The Department of Health (DOH), and the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) presented a 16-month runway of shared reforms aimed at advancing not only PhilHealth’s RISE30 Mission, but also improving access, equity, and efficiency in Universal Health Care (UHC) delivery across the Philippines.
More than 100 participants, including global development partners, financial institutions, academe, foundations, civil society organizations, other government oversight agencies, and stakeholders, as well as PhilHealth officers and technical staff, convened today at the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Headquarters to align resources and technical expertise behind UHC reforms.
Co-sponsored by the ADB through its Build Universal Health Coverage (BUHC) Project, the 2026 PhilHealth Partners’ Forum was led by DOH Acting Secretary, Dr. Edwin M. Mercado, Acting PhilHealth President and CEO, Dr. Beverly Lorraine C. Ho, and ADB Country Director Andrew Jeffries. The forum facilitated direct alignment of partner resources and expertise with the sector’s Shared Agenda and PhilHealth’s multi-year Technical Assistance (TA) Agenda.
The program also featured a tribute honoring the coordinated success of PhilHealth and its partners over the past 18 months, recognizing the collective effort behind the gains made in advancing UHC reforms. Primary Care Champion and Department of Finance Secretary, Frederick D. Go, expressed his support for, and confidence in the agencies’ shared agenda. ADB Director of the Human and Social Development Sector Office, and former PhilHealth President and CEO, Dr. Eduardo Banzon, commended the progress PhilHealth has made over the past year. PhilHealth recognizes both leaders as pillars of support of the Build UHC Program, whose continued partnership has been instrumental in driving the impact and reach of PhilHealth’s programs nationwide.
Looking ahead, PhilHealth remains fully committed to building this ecosystem of support alongside the Department of Health. With primary care as the backbone of UHC, the TA Agenda continues to build on the strong collaboration in long-term planning and further expands the partner network in support of ongoing UHC reforms. To ensure the success of these outcomes, PhilHealth laid down the pathway for stakeholders to provide their continued support and active engagement toward this shared, coordinated success.
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