Many people believe that health care is best when it’s privately operated – public establishments are plagued by long lines, damaged equipment, missing supplies, and limited doctors and staff. If we want prompt, effective health care, we need to pay for it. But many can’t. And that’s just how it works, right?

Wrong. This shouldn’t be the case at all, because health care should be part of the basic social services everyone should receive. You have the power to change this. Under democracy, we have one simple yet potent power: our vote. 

With our vote, we have the power to influence who is running the country, and this also decides the accessibility and quality of Filipino health care.

The Philippine health care system has much room for improvement

In the Philippines, six out of 10 patients go through their whole lives and die without ever seeing a doctor. When we Filipinos get sick, we pay out of pocket for 56% of total health expenses. And every year, 1 million patients are driven to poverty due to these insurmountable health expenses.

According to a 2018 review of the Philippine health care system, health outcomes are generally improving, but there is a long way to go. Between addressing inefficiencies due to disorganized governance and financing and empowering patients to seek and influence the care offered by the state, the Philippines is hardly keeping up.

The benefit package covered by PhilHealth is still not enough and does not respond to the evolving needs of the population. The maternal mortality ratio has stayed at a high level for the past 25 years. Almost 100% of women of the lowest to highest wealth quintiles know of family planning methods, but only around 50% use them. 

Very early on in March 2020, Dr. Ronnie Baticulon wrote that the Philippine health care system was never ready for a pandemic. And according to data from March 2022 two years later, COVID-19 has taken the lives of almost 60,000 people, with over 3.5 million total cases since it began in 2020. This figure is believed to be even lower than the actual number of cases since we can’t be sure about the number of undocumented COVID cases nor the number of non-COVID cases that went untreated due to hospitals becoming overwhelmed.

It is essential that the public engage in improving transparency and accountability in government programs. We see efforts to promote this, but it’s different in each city or municipality because it depends on the openness of the local government officials.

We could go on and on about how the national health care system is riddled with inefficiencies. It’s evident that we must take action, and one way to do that is by voting. 

What can your vote do?

When we vote for a president this May 9, we are giving them the power to run the country. With this power comes great responsibility. This includes deciding what bills are passed and signed into law and who occupies key positions like the secretary in charge of the Department of Health.

To exemplify how powerful this position is, let’s talk about how health reforms from 2010 to 2016 benefited greatly from presidential support (along with collaboration with other government agencies and other stakeholders). 

Administrative Order No. 2010–0036, the operational strategy on Kalusugan Pangkalahatan (Universal Health Care), was issued in 2010. During this period, major reforms like the Mandatory Infants and Children’s Health Immunization Act of 2011, the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act, and the National Health Insurance Act of 2013 were made. This resulted in coverage for 84% of the population and an increase in accredited health facilities from 89% to 99% by 2016.

But of course, the president doesn’t act alone – the people we vote into the senate become lawmakers in addition to serving as part of the system of checks and balances to make sure government funds are budgeted with the benefit of the people in mind.  Sen. Loren Legarda, for example, was the principal author of the National Health Insurance Act in 2013 that made amendments to better the administration of the National Health Insurance Program, especially for poor families. Meanwhile, Sen. Risa Hontiveros was the author and principal author of the Mental Health Law that was signed in 2018. 

More recently, the Universal Health Care Law of 2019, sponsored by Sen. Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito and Sen. Risa Hontiveros, aims to address the issue of fragmentation of the health care delivery system and make health care accessible to all by no longer requiring the PhilHealth ID. It also seeks to lower the doctor: patient ratio by requiring government scholars of health-related courses to serve in the public sector for three years upon graduation.

The future Congress has the power to strengthen, weaken, or erase the policies and laws put into place in the previous administrations. This can potentially drive national health care forward in its goals to provide quality care for all Filipinos, or it can push progress back several years.

Things won’t magically change just by electing one person, nor will they drastically improve overnight. There are a number of moving parts working together to achieve the goals of the health care system. And putting the right people on the team can make the differences we need to make these systems thrive in the future.

How can I educate myself on the candidates?

We’re voting for 14 different positions this year, with 10 candidates for president, nine for vice president, and 64 vying for senatorship. We’re also tasked with choosing 63 party-list groups and our local governors, mayors, and councilors.

That’s a lot to learn and research about, and you might be wondering how to decide which candidates to vote for. To feel less overwhelmed with all the pieces of information available, share this blog with a friend and work together to find out which candidates you want to vote for. For senators, one good place to start is CandiData, where you can see data about the candidates for president, vice president, and senator.

Conclusion and Throwback

Health care really is a life or death matter, so your vote is crucial. Do your research and vote for legislators and leaders who have the wisdom and expertise to affect positive change, for the health and wellbeing of all Filipinos.