Getting infected with COVID-19 is already too heavy to bear but paying the bill is a lot heavier, I guess! This is the actual bill of a COVID-19 patient, the reason why you need to STAY AT HOME.
A COVID-19 patient was entitled to pay PhP1,112,327.59 for treatment in a private hospital in Manila. However, during a press briefing conducted last April 7, PhilHealth President and CEO Ricardo Morales said that they have set a cap on the amount that a COVID-19 patient, Persons Under Investigation and Persons Under Monitoring has to pay. This statement is contrary to the previous statement in which they claimed to pay ‘everything’ on the hospital bill of the patient as the agency still doesn’t have ‘existing case rate or package’ for that specific disease at the moment.
Case rate packages are available and it is based on the severity: PhP43,997 for mild pneumonia, PhP143,267 for moderate pneumonia, PhP333,519 for severe and PhP786, 384 for critical cases. This coverage of expenses applies to patients admitted to hospital accredited by PhilHealth effective April 15, 2020.
This amount is covered by PhilHealth. But what about the other fees? These are s rundown of payment as per the immediate family of a COVID-19 patient who recovered recently.
- COVID -19 Testing Kit
Each patient is required to undergo COVID-19 testing for at least three times throughout their entire confinement period. They will be tested two more aside from the confirmatory tests before they get discharged. Each test kit costs PhP8,000. But thanks to the low-cost test kits released by the scientist at the University of the Philippines, you can get tested for as low as PhP1,500.
- Ambulance Transport
It is a free service from the local governments in the Philippines. But if you wish to be serviced by a private ambulance from a hospital, it will cost you a PhP16,000 round trip.
- Hospital Confinement
According to the World Health Organization, the usual recovery time of COVID-19 patients is two weeks for mild COVID-19 cases while three to six weeks for those severe to critical cases. In one patient who stayed in the hospital for 18 days, he had to pay 50 pages billing statement with a total amount of PhP1, 112,327.
- Emergency Room Stay
The patient had to stay in the Emergency Room for eight days and it costs him PhP176,945. This bill covered the use of oxymeters and cardiac monitors which are charged at an hourly rate. The pulmonary Diagnostic and Therapeutic Center also charged him with PhP123,665 from his second day on the ER to the time he was transferred to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).
“They did add up… Before we were wheeled into the ICU, our bill at the ER had hit PHP750,000,” says the family of the patient.
- Laboratory Tests
The patient took several laboratory tests throughout his admission. A set of the laboratory including a blood test, x-rays, one COVID-19 test kit all cost PhP178,820.
There are also pharmaceutical products that are just very expensive. It costed them PhP305,636.06.
- Room Rates
The hospital’s ICU room costs PhP6,300 per day while the regular isolation room costs PhP6,100 per day. The patient spent five days in the hospital, therefore, the bill for the room rate accumulated to PhP55,700.
With this huge hospital bill, do you still want to go out? Or stay home and avoid contracting the disease?
Source / MSN
