The Insurance Commission said Wednesday it is ready to take over the regulation of health maintenance organizations from the Health Department, as stipulated by a presidential order.
“The Insurance Commission is ready to take on this transfer of responsibility. We have championed good corporate governance among insurance companies for the benefit of everyday Filipinos availing of insurance products,” Insurance Commissioner Emmanuel Dooc said.
President Benigno Aquino III recently transferred the regulation and supervision of HMOs to IC through Executive Order No. 192.
An HMO is a prepaid healthcare service provider offering comprehensive coverage to its members through partnerships with hospitals and other health professionals.
Under the order, regulatory and supervisory capacities of the DoH is transferred to IC, covering establishment, operations and financial activities of HMOs.
The IC shall be responsible for the rules and guidelines on establishment of HMOs as well as licensing and registration.
The IC will also oversee the solvency of HMOs and the prevention of fraud and other deceptive practices of the industry.
The transfer is meant to improve accessibility and accountability, as well as to provide more efficient use of specialized expertise—saving on administrative costs and promote sharing of best practices.
“There is a need to streamline and consolidate functions related to the regulation of HMOs to eliminate redundancy, simplify the organizational structure of the executive department, improve accessibility and accountability, provide efficient use of specialized expertise, realize savings in administrative costs, and promote effective sharing of best practices,” the order stated.
“We have promoted the solvency and stability of the insurance and pre-need industries to protect the interests of the consumers. We intend to apply the same principles in regulating HMOs,” Dooc said.
The IC will take charge of issuing licenses to operate but will also honor clearances to operate issued by DoH before the EO is implemented. All issues related to medical matters shall be referred to DoH.
The EO spelled out administrative arrangements the IC and the DoH must take to manage the transition.
“This is another step forward in our bid to deepen good governance in both the private and public sectors—I expect the Insurance Commission to continue strengthening their regulatory capacity,” the Finance Department said.