The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) is reminding government agencies and government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCCs) to check their financial allocations in their share as employer for contributions to the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth).
“Notwithstanding the upward adjustments in HIP [health insurance premium] contributions to support expanded benefits for more beneficiaries, and that payment for personnel benefits is considered a mandatory government expense, the following policies on HIP contributions as prescribed under previous DBM issuances are hereby reiterated to ensure that payments for employer [government] shares shall have the corresponding appropriation cover for fiscal sustainability and payments for employee shares shall correspond to the employer [government] share for equitability,” DBM Circular Letter 2019-8 read.
Agencies are instructed to ensure that the payment of government HIP contributions is supported by corresponding appropriations, as well as to ensure that employees’ personal share collected from the individual’s monthly basic salary, or MBS, should correspond to the government share provided under the budget.
The circular said that GOCCs receiving subsidy from the government shall always comply with the rates outlined in the latest circular issued by the DBM.
“The employer [government] share in the HIP contribution to be remitted to PhilHealth shall be increased only upon appropriate advice or notice from the DBM,” the circular added.
GOCCs that do not receive any form of subsidy from the government, as well as local government units are not required to adopt the rate imposed under the latest DBM circular if they are already paying the latest premium rates under a circular from the PhilHealth.
The DBM issued its circular in line with Republic Act (RA) 11223 or the Universal Health Care (UHC) Act, which calls for the adoption of a higher income ceiling to support expanded benefits that will be implemented under the law. RA 11223 also mandates a schedule of the monthly income floor and ceiling for premium contributions.
For 2019, the premium rate is at 2.75 percent with an income floor of P10,000 and ceiling of P50,000; a premium rate of 3 percent with an income floor of P10,000 and ceiling of P60,000 for 2020; and a premium rate of 3.50 percent with an income floor of P10,000 and ceiling of P70,000 for 2021; among others.
“In accordance thereto, effective the applicable month of 2019, i.e., 15 days after publication, or March 8, 2019, the monthly premium contribution shall be at the rate of 2.75 percent, computed straight based on the MBS, with a salary floor of P10,000 and a ceiling of P50,000, to be equally shared by the employee and the employer [government],” it said.
An MBS of P10,000 and below at a monthly premium rate of 2.75 percent means P275 with the employee and the employer having to contribute P137.50 each for the HIP.
For those with an MBS of P10,000.01 up to P49,999, which translates to a premium of between P275.02 and P1,100, the employee and employer will have to shell out P137.51 to P550 each.
Meanwhile, those with an MBS of P50,000 and above, which means a premium of P1,375, will mean that the employee and employer share amounts to P687.50 each.