3 Best Health Cards in the Philippines (AFFORDABLE Health Cards)

Are you looking for the best health cards in the Philippines?

Getting sick is expensive — especially if you’re a freelancer or a self-employed Filipino like me.

Thankfully, you can reduce your healthcare expenses if you get sick as long as you get an HMO plan in the form of a prepaid health card.

In this post, we’ll talk about the basics of HMO, what the best HMO Philippines is, and which health cards give the best value for your money.

What is HMO?
2 Types of HMO in the Philippines
Why Should You Get a Health Card?
Best Prepaid Health Cards in the Philippines

Let’s bolt in!

What is HMO?

HMO, also known as Health Maintenance Organization, is a company that provides coverage of healthcare services to its members — as long as the members have paid their premiums in advance.

The most popular HMO providers in the Philippines are:

Maxicare HealthCare
Medicard Philippines
ValuCare Health System
Insular Health Care (InLife)
Intellicare
and many others

2 Types of HMO in the Philippines

Typically, HMO providers in the Philippines offer coverage for two types of healthcare plans, depending on your budget.

1. Comprehensive HMO Plans

Cost: ₱5,000 to ₱60,000 per year

If you can shell out tens of thousands pesos a year for healthcare coverage, then a comprehensive HMO plan is for you.

A traditional HMO plan usually includes the full healthcare package:

Out-patient care (consultations, laboratory, etc)
In-patient care (hospitalization, operating room, professional fees, etc)
Emergency care (professional fees, emergency room expenses, medicines, etc)
Preventive care (annual physical exam, immunizations, etc.)

2. Prepaid Health Cards for Filipinos

Cost: ₱500 to ₱5,000 per year

On the other hand, a prepaid health card in the Philippines allows you to get healthcare coverage without breaking the bank.

But you won’t get the full healthcare package with a prepaid health card.

Some health cards have coverage for emergency care only, while others have coverage for preventive health care exclusively.

The type of healthcare coverage you have depends on the health card you buy.

Why Should You Get a Health Card?

Before we talk about the best health cards in the Philippines, let’s see why it’s important for you to get one:

More affordable – It’s cheaper to pay for a prepaid health card that you may use, rather than to not get one and need the healthcare coverage. Plus, you can usually buy a health card and pay it with your credit card online.
Flexible healthcare coverage – Right now, there are tons of health cards you can choose from, so you can easily find the best healthcare that fits your needs.
Peace of mind – It’s better to buy a cheap health card and not need it, than to not buy a health card but need it. You also have a peace of mind knowing you have a back-up just in case, so you don’t need to dip into your bank’s savings account.

If that’s not enough, here’s a personal story back when I was younger.

I was sent to the ER a few years ago because I was paranoid when I had extreme chest pain.

The nurse was like, “Ma’am, do you have health insurance?”

And I was smiling proudly when I said, “Oh of course, I have PhilHealth!”

It was then when the nurse told me that I could only use PhilHealth if I were confined for a minimum of 24 hours. Lol. Talk about a harsh awakening!

As a result, I had to pay ₱4,000+ for one tablet of painkiller, one tablet of antacid and 2 hours in the emergency room! Grabe.

If only I knew of these best health cards before…

Best Prepaid Health Cards in the Philippines

Since I’m a self-employed author, I can easily relate with everyone who sent me messages to ask me to recommend affordable health cards which can fit their needs.

Here are the best health cards in the Philippines that you can consider:

1. Maxicare EReady

What it is: Maxicare EReady is a one-time medical emergency prepaid healthcare card that covers up to ₱15,000 on illnesses or injuries that arise from medical-related emergency conditions

HMO Type: Affordable health card for emergency care

Prices: ₱839 (without major hospitals) or ₱1,039 (with major hospitals)

Maximum one-time coverage of ₱15,000

Major Hospitals:

Asian Hospital
Cardinal Santos Medical Center
Makati Medical Center
St. Luke’s Medical Center QC
St. Luke’s Medical Center Taguig
The Medical City

Healthcare Coverage: Life threatening conditions, illnesses and/or injuries that require immediate medical assistance such as heart attacks, cardiovascular or cerebrovascular accidents, loss of consciousness, and convulsions

Includes:

Doctor’s services for emergency treatment
Emergency room fees
Emergency (no take-home) medicines for immediate relief and treatment
Oxygen, IV fluids, whole blood and human blood products
Dressings, casts, sutures
X-ray, laboratory and diagnostic
Initial treatment for animal bites (within 24 hours from time of bite; with vaccines included)

Once the EReady Card has been swiped and accepted by the system, it will automatically be deactivated.

Once activated, your card will be valid for one (1) year. When emergency arises, present your card together with a valid ID (government issued or official company or school ID card) to accredited hospitals.

2. MediCard Health Check

What it is: The MediCard Health Check card gives you unlimited check-ups with MediCard’s primary care physicians and select specialists plus one-time annual physical exam.

HMO Type: Affordable health card for preventive health care

Price: ₱500 per year

Healthcare Coverage: Annual Physical Examination and unlimited out‑patient consultations with MediCard’s primary care physicians and select specialists

Annual Physical Examination

Comprehensive Physical Examination
Complete Blood Count
Urinalysis
Fecalysis (Stool Exam)
Chest X-ray

Out-Patient Consultations

General Practitioner
Family Medicine Physician
Internal Medicine Physician
Paediatrician
Gynecologist (except on maternity-related consultations)

3. PhilCare Health Vantage Adults 40

What it is: A multiple-use prepaid card that provides coverage for emergency care and hospitalization for viral and bacterial illnesses and treatment of injuries resulting from accidents (except for stroke).

HMO Type: Affordable health card for emergency and in-patient care

Price: ₱3,750 per year

Multiple-use, maximum coverage of ₱40,000 – You can use your health card as long as the total plan benefit limit of ₱40,000 is not used up within one year of activation.

Healthcare Coverage: Acute cases of bacterial and viral infections such as:

appendicitis
bronchitis
gastritis
gastroenteritis
pharyngitis
pyelonephritis
urinary tract infections sinusitis
tonsilitis
upper respiratory tract Infection
amoebiasis
cellulitis
dengue fever
pneumoni
typhoid fever

Includes:

Emergency room fees
Room and board (Ward Room) if emergency case needs admission
Doctor’s professional fees
Laboratory, diagnostic, and therapeutic procedures
Medicines (except vaccines) as medically necessary during confinement except for cases declared as non-coverable
Special modalities of treatment which are medically necessary during ER and confinement and subject to standard inner limits
₱10,000 life insurance
₱50,000 accidental death and dismemberment coverage

For more details, here’s a list of non-covered illnesses and diseases.

Final Thoughts on the Best Health Cards in the Philippines

At the end of the day, getting sick can be expensive — but you can lower the costs of medical expenses by getting a health card that best suits your needs.

Want to buy a health card but don’t have a credit card to pay for it? You may want to see this next post on how to get approved for a credit card in the Philippines.