THE PHILIPPINE Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO)on Monday said it had remitted P2.5 billion to the National Treasury to boost the country’s universal healthcare law.
The money that will be allotted to the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) came from revenues from gaming operations including small town lottery games, PCSO General Manager Melquiades A. Robles told a news briefing.
“This is just the first among the remittances that we will do because, under the law, 40% of our charity fund will have to go to universal health care,” he said.
Under the law, 40% of the agency’s charity fund and half of the National Government’s share from the income of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. must be used to fund universal health care.
The law, which automatically enrolls Filipinos in state insurer PhilHealth, seeks to give Filipinos access to different medical services. It mandates PhilHealth to cover consultation fees, laboratory tests and other diagnostic services. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza