national health insurance program (NHIP), Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (Philhealth) has around 1, 554, 921 or an estimated 7, 539, 066 members including their dependents in Western Visayas.

As of May this year the membership data base of Philhealth has already achieved some 98. 59 percent coverage of the 7, 646, 954 projected population for 2010.

Those enrolled in the sponsored program whose premiums are being paid by local government units or sponsors has the highest enrollment with 613, 149 members followed by those from the employed sector with 575, 997 members.

Further, the individually paying program (IPP) has 190, 970 members; household, 2, 032; lifetime members, 56, 102; overseas Filipino workers, 109, 102 and 7, 599 for a special program known as KASAPI.

However, Lourdes Diocson, chief of the Field Operations Division said that they are now in the process of cleansing their date base to ensure that each member has only one Philhealth number and that their dependents are properly documented and not only rely on estimation.

Meanwhile, Philhealth public relations officer 3 Larry Tabsing lauded the statement of President Benigno Aquino to increase the NHIP coverage to reach about a hundred percent in the next three years to achieve a universal coverage.

?The plan would benefit more indigents because I believe that there are still a lot of them who are not covered by the Philhealth,? he said.

Likewise, he added that LGUs can also benefit if they have increased enrollees in the sponsored program because Philhealth is giving back capitation fund that they can use to improve their health facilities.