MANILA – In a major development aligned with Generics Awareness Month, the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) has partnered with a retail pharmacy chain which has officially launched its “Kasama sa Pag-Galing” campaign, highlighting a strategic partnership to make essential outpatient treatments more accessible and affordable for Filipino families.
The initiative focuses heavily on empowering communities through health education regarding generic medicines, prescription reading, proper over-the-counter medication use and refill planning.
During the recent launch, senior citizens and community members benefited directly from one-on-one pharmacist guidance and free consultations provided by volunteer doctors.
The cornerstone of the campaign is Southstar Drug’s formal accreditation as a partner pharmacy under PhilHealth’s GAMOT (Guaranteed and Accessible Medications for Outpatient Treatment) benefit package, operating under the YAKAP, or Yaman ng Kalusugan Program.
The primary goal of the collaboration is to expand medicine access significantly for the public.
While standard YAKAP facilities provide 21 essential medicines, the GAMOT benefit seamlessly integrates 54 additional generic medicines, bringing the total coverage to 75 essential medicines.
This broader formulary allows patients managing long-term health conditions and various outpatient illnesses to secure necessary maintenance treatments.
Further, the partnership provides comprehensive outpatient support by having Southstar Drug stores actively assist beneficiaries with YAKAP registration, educate them on GAMOT privileges, and help connect beneficiaries with YAKAP-accredited doctors who can prescribe the medicines that Southstar can subsequently dispense.
To ensure smooth availment of covered medications through accredited partners, PhilHealth and Southstar Drug have outlined a clear procedure for beneficiaries.
As a matter of protocol, patients must first seek consultation from their selected YAKAP facility and obtain the appropriate prescription before covered medicines can be dispensed.
Once the official prescription is secured, the patient may go to any accredited GAMOT facility, such as Southstar Drug, to obtain the prescribed medicines, subject to applicable PhilHealth program requirements.
With Southstar Drug operating over 700 stores nationwide, this partnership aims to bring community-level health services and streamlined refill planning to more communities across the country. (PNA)
