Allowing students, staff, and families to YAKAP primary care services.
On Tuesday, October 6, the Department of Education (DepEd), Department of Health (DOH), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), and the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) signed a landmark agreement.
The said partnership concerns the launch of the YAKAP School Health and Protection Program (YAKAP-SHP), which will make public schools organized access points for YAKAP registration, clinic selection, screening, referrals, and other program activities for students, teachers, non-teaching staff, and their qualified dependents.
Apart from them, the program also covers out-of-school youth and students with developmental delays and disabilities.
Education Secretary Sonny Angara stated that the agreement opens up opportunities to expand the YAKAP Program nationwide, utilizing school clinics to directly link school communities to PhilHealth benefits.
“Napakalaking bagay nito para sa atin, sa ating mga teachers, sa ating mga learners, at sa kanilang mga pamilya,” he said, citing YAKAP Caravan being well-received by the public who need access to PhilHealth’s services.
Hence, the new initiative expands access to YAKAP primary care, health screenings, and services tailored for persons with disabilities by leveraging schools and their linkages with YAKAP Clinics and other service providers.
Standard screenings include assessments of vision, hearing, dental health, nutrition, and psychosocial and developmental domains.
Also present at the signing were DOH Secretary Dr. Edwin Mercado, DILG Secretary Jonvic Remulla, and PhilHealth President and CEO Dr. Beverly Ho.
Angara stated that the involvement of the DILG would help mobilize and coordinate the participation of local government units, down to the barangay level.
In accordance with Republic Act No. 11650, or the Inclusive Education Act of 2022, the Joint Memorandum Circular (JMC) strengthens targeted support for learners with disabilities by directly integrating disability and developmental screening into the YAKAP primary care program.
The five-year MOA allows schools to host YAKAP services and mobile caravans, assist with beneficiary registration and care navigation, and establish DepEd-managed school clinics that may seek PhilHealth accreditation to directly provide YAKAP services.
It establishes referral and care-navigation pathways to appropriate health, rehabilitation, and specialized services, while ensuring that these health interventions align with the Child Find System, educational assessments, Multidisciplinary Team processes, Inclusive Learning Resource Center (ILRC) services, Individualized Education Plans (IEP), reasonable accommodations, and other inclusive education mechanisms.
Private healthcare providers and other partners may also adopt school clinics by refurbishing existing facilities, providing health professionals, or bringing YAKAP services directly to the site.
Separately, Angara also signed a bilateral Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) and Data Sharing Agreement (DSA) with PhilHealth.
According to thr DepEd, families can undergo a four-step process to access the services — registration, selection of their preferred YAKAP Clinic from available provider options, completion of the First Patient Encounter (FPE), and empanelment.
Health screenings may be conducted in schools by personnel who have undergone appropriate training and, where required, are licensed or authorized. Schools and other facilities serving children will facilitate these processes by coordinating with PhilHealth and YAKAP Clinics, while beneficiaries retain the right to choose their preferred clinic from the available provider options.
To ensure students receive continuous treatment, designated health guides or care navigators will manage referrals to appropriate health, developmental, disability-related, and support services.
Prior to this, PhilHealth also partnered with major health maintenance organizations (HMOs) and private health insurers (PHIs) to establish the PhilHealth YAKAP – HMO/PHI Benefit Complementation initiative in support of the Universal Health Care (UHC) law.
Under the MOU, PhilHealth will serve as the initial source of coverage for primary care
services through its Yaman ng Kalusugan Program (YAKAP), while private insurers
complement this coverage by providing additional benefits.
“With PhilHealth YAKAP as the first layer of protection, our private partners can focus
their benefits on what lies beyond the program package. That way, every Filipino gets more care for every peso,” said PhilHealth Acting President and CEO Dr. Beverly Ho.
As the secondary payers, HMOs and PHIs can cover costs that exceed PhilHealth benefit limits or fall outside primary care coverage, such as specialized procedures, branded medications, or hospital room upgrades.
YAKAP covers consultations, 13 laboratory tests, selected outpatient medicines under the GAMOT package, and outpatient services for six cancer screening tests.
Under the PhilHealth primary care program, specialized outpatient benefits such as animal bite treatment, maternal care, Tuberculosis DOTS, HIV/AIDS management, and mental health services are also included, as applicable.
PhilHealth aldonurges all members and policyholders to register for PhilHealth YAKAP via the eGovPH app, PhilHealth Member Portal, or nearest PhilHealth office to instantly maximize their primary care coverage alongside their private HMO benefits.
