The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth), a government-owned and controlled corporation, will be implementing paperless transactions through the enhanced Health Care Institution Portal (HCIP) in all of its accredited hospitals by end of March 2014.

The enhanced HCIP functions as an electronic gateway among PhilHealth members and their dependents, healthcare providers and PhilHealth. It aims to:

•Harmonise the different systems of PhilHealth for healthcare providers into a single point of entry;

•Streamline filing of claims and availment procedures by PhilHealth members and their dependents;

•Replace Member Data Record (MDR) with PhilHealth Benefit Eligibility Form, which shall contain additional information relevant to benefit availment;

•Reduce the documentary requirements to facilitate filing of claims.

•Provide a way for PhilHealth to disseminate or provide real-time information to connected Health Care Institutions.

According to Christine Mae Garcia-Magno, branch head of the Local Health Insurance Office of PHilHealth Iligan, the hospital portal minimises the need to secure a MDR from the PhilHealth Office because hospitals can now easily view a members’ record electronically and can also immediately determine if the member has sufficient premium contributions necessary to avail.