# Hospital Detention & Your Rights - In The Philippines



## hogrider (May 25, 2010)

Interesting video about how hospitals in Philippines may detain the patient if he/she is unable to pay the bill.


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## northwoods (Nov 14, 2013)

*insurance*

i watched this one yesterday , really got me thinking .
is there a good ,,health care plan , in the philippine's ?


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## pakawala (Sep 10, 2014)

Good re-informing Information for those who don't have insurance and want to live here.

IMPLEMENTING RULES AND REGULATIONS - REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9439 - PHILIPPINE LAWS, STATUTES AND CODES - CHAN ROBLES VIRTUAL LAW LIBRARY 

Like the guy said, the Hospital typically would not put one in a "Private Room" unless they knew one had the means or insurance to pay. However when you read the definition of a Private Room there could be some gray areas.

Private Room - a single occupancy room or a ward type room divided by either a permanent or semi-permanent partition (except curtains) not to exceed 4 patients per room who are admitted for diagnosis, treatment and other forms of health care maintenance.

Bottom line. If one has no Insurance or means to pay and ones Hospital stay meets the criteria of a private room then there is no law to protect one from Private Room hospital debt protection action like Republic Act No. 9439. 

If one has no insurance or means to pay, perhaps it's best to ask for a non private room and documentation at admittance indicating that it does not meet the criteria as a private room as listed in Republic Act No. 9439.


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## magsasaja (Jan 31, 2014)

northwoods said:


> i watched this one yesterday , really got me thinking .
> is there a good ,,health care plan , in the philippine's ?


There are good healthcare plans available in the Philippines, however you have to be very careful, as they will not pay for a preexisting conditions during the first year.


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## hogrider (May 25, 2010)

magsasaja said:


> There are good healthcare plans available in the Philippines, however you have to be very careful, as they will not pay for a preexisting conditions during the first year.


I would be very interested to find out about a good health care plan.
Please share. If not allowed by forum rules please pm me.
Thanks,


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## northwoods (Nov 14, 2013)

*health care plan*



hogrider said:


> I would be very interested to find out about a good health care plan.
> Please share. If not allowed by forum rules please pm me.
> Thanks,


.. yes like wise , please PM me .
if you know , any specific companies .
thanks in advance .


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## Tukaram (Dec 18, 2014)

magsasaja said:


> There are good healthcare plans available in the Philippines, however you have to be very careful, as they will not pay for a preexisting conditions during the first year.


Yeah, I had a friend that had to get his gall bladder removed, in Cebu. He had insurance for 6 months and they said they would not pay, as it was a preexisting condition. They said it takes longer than 6 months for a gall bladder to go bad. So I suppose the same would be true for a bypass. It takes longer for the arteries to harden.

After a couple months of fighting (and the Filipino wife having a lawyer relative that works for CNN Manila) the insurance decided to pay. but they would try that in the US too, I bet.


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## pagbati (Apr 9, 2014)

*Private Health Care Plans*



hogrider said:


> Interesting video about how hospitals in Philippines may detain the patient if he/she is unable to pay the bill. https://youtu.be/KinMVcGZg0A





hogrider said:


> I would be very interested to find out about a good health care plan. Please share. If not allowed by forum rules please pm me. Thanks,





northwoods said:


> .. yes like wise , please PM me. if you know , any specific companies. thanks in advance .


Seems there are a few of us who would be interested to hear about decent, affordable health care plans as a back up to Phil Health. Perhaps a moderator would step in and advise whether or not it is in compliance with forum rules for members to post some of their experiences with Private Health Care Providers. Having perused the forum rules briefly, I though the following rule might apply, quote, _"Don't therefore post unsolicited URL's in threads unless a specific request for information has been requested by a poster",_ unquote. As several members are already requesting information on these companies, can that be regarded as solicited and therefore permitted? I'd hazard a guess that many other members would be interested in hearing about alternative health plans. It would also save having to PM people and avoid a situation where members like myself, who are interested, don't hear about it.
Like I said, I'd appreciate it if a moderator could clarify what's permissable here. If it's not allowed, then please include me with any PM's in this regard. Thanks.


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## SierraMadreMe (Mar 26, 2015)

I can't be of much help with Health Care Plans,but know this..if you are over 60,you will play heck trying to find a plan that will accept you.

I was lucky that the wife was able to get on Phil Health,and name me as a dependent.It's not that they pay a lot I imagine,but it is something.

If anyone does find a plan that will take over 60,I would appreciate hearing about it...like everyone else.

SMM

Hiya NW!


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## Tiz (Jan 23, 2016)

My situation is a bit different than most here, as I'm working and covered by my employers health scheme with CIGNA.

I'm 56 and recently had a stay in Makati Medical Centre.

MMC contacted Cigna just after I was admitted and immediately received a fax from then authorizing full payment for any procedures that they needed to do.

My bill was PHP 280,000. It sure makes recovery easier when you don't have to worry about the bill.

I don't know what their rates are like, but I'll certainly look into their coverage when I decide to retire (probably mid next year)


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## jon1 (Mar 18, 2012)

I thought that I would revive this thread after learning about a fellow rider's fate in St Luke's. He went down and fractured his leg in two places. After a 3 week struggle, he lost part of his leg about a foot below the knee. He is now facing a 1.2M peso hospital bill. 

One thing that you can do when faced with a hospital admittance, is to negotiate with the doctors, nurses and specialists to directly pay them their fees at a later date in full (30-45 days). Their fees can easily equal to more than half of the bill. If you are able to pay the whole hospital bill (fills included), it takes the hospital 60-90 days to disperse these fees to the medical professionals. So you are helping them and yourself. 

I did this back in 2010 at St Luke's and was able to walk out after paying $5000 covering my hospital expenses on my Credit Card and paying off the medical professionals a month later directly (another $5000).


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## Billfish (Apr 13, 2013)

You do need to be careful as I had a staff member who went to one of the big hospitals in Manila, couldn't pay all the bills (a new-born was put in ICU) and they kept the baby in the ICU until the cash could be delivered. Every day extra it took her the ICU bills kept climbing. 

Nasty.


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## pijoe (Jul 21, 2015)

If you go to St. Lukes web site, pick the Global City location and scroll down half way there is a list of in country PPO's and HMO's that they honor. I would start with those companies and investigate their plans. Ex-pat insurance is available for up to one year from outside companies. Basically travel policies meant for people on vacations but well worth the peace of mind while waiting for the grace period to pass from an in country plan. Philhealth gets you an automatic 20% discount at St. Lukes as well. I spent a week at St. Lukes a couple months ago. $6,500 bill I didnt have to worry about. I would not go anywhere else.


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## pijoe (Jul 21, 2015)

Blue Cross PH. has a wizard app. to figure out a premium. I ran through the wizard as a 50 year old male and selected a premium product and came up with a php 35,500 annual premium. Not bad really....


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## simonsays (Feb 11, 2009)

Tukaram said:


> Yeah, I had a friend that had to get his gall bladder removed, in Cebu. He had insurance for 6 months and they said they would not pay, as it was a preexisting condition. They said it takes longer than 6 months for a gall bladder to go bad. So I suppose the same would be true for a bypass. It takes longer for the arteries to harden.
> 
> After a couple months of fighting (and the Filipino wife having a lawyer relative that works for CNN Manila) the insurance decided to pay. but they would try that in the US too, I bet.


Well, I had a similar run in with a "Large" insurance company who's name starts with P.

Initially they said the costs were not covered. After I wrote an angry letter telling them if they said that in the first place, I won't have paid for the certified hospital diagnosis transcripts... 

And then they said "oh, sorry, we will review it"

Then a reply "your amount is within the deductible.

That lead me to start reading up on insurance terms and all

So if you want a insurance to cover you fully, well, there are insurance policies that do - be prepared to pay more.

if you get an insurance without knowing excess, deductible, limits and all, don't complain  

PS, about hospitals holding people hostage, well, I know enough folks in medical field. They had a simple explanation: if you are not able to pay, go to the nearest public hospital. Don't come to a private hospital, that has over heads, and then expect free service.

Too many times, in Philippines, doctors who are in private hospitals get villified when their hands are tied, vs the patients expecting excellent care and not willing to pay.

PPS, I am covered by Philhealth, so the insurance I get is for what's not covered.


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