The national health insurance program to be held on October 2 aims at covering thousands of individuals under the insurance plan. It is a collaborative effort of the Department of Health and PhilHealth and is especially for the impoverished and marginalized people.

DoH and PhilHealth are hoping to enroll 55,300 new members across the region, as told by Edgardo Gonzaga, DOH Region 8 Director. He added that the effort is an outcome of President Benigno Aquino III's orders to achieve universal PhilHealth coverage in three years.

The program will be carried out by setting up PhilHealth desks in public schools, municipal halls, Philhealth offices and all DOH-maintained hospitals in the region. The registration will be done by the Department of Health, the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, the Department of Education, the Department of Social Welfare and Development and the Department of Interior and Local Government in the Region.

The initiative will include Filipino citizens aged at least 21 years and non-members of the program, 18 to 20 year olds who are not registered, existing contributors, non-issuers of PhilHealth Number Card or Family Health Card; and members in need to update membership. The program basically aims at self-employed and informal sector workers, which accounts 53% of the total population.

Sponsorships will be provided by the national and local Governments to those from low income households for their premiums.