An 11-man Mongolian delegation led by MPs L. Gundalai and D. Ochirbat were recently in the Philippines for a week to study the system for health care services there, with special emphasis on integrating such services for social health insurance. The other members of the team included the Executive Director of the Mongolian Employers’ Association and the Head of the Private Sector Employees’ Trade Union.

Welcoming the delegates, Dr. Rey B. Aquino, President and CEO of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation said that while the Mongolians had come primarily to learn about the Philippine model of SHI, “we also learned more about their country’s SHI program”. He noted the parallels in the two countries’ SHI programs, like the contribution sharing of employees and employers, and the flat rate for the self-employed sector.

The Mongolian team showed interest in personnel management and incentives, actuarial foundations of SHI, premium-setting, collecting contributions, developing a collection system and benefit packages for members. It studied the ways of implementing the program at the local level, the quality framework in health care service provision, modules on standards-setting and performance monitoring of health care providers, and insurance mechanisms to protect the poor and the informal sector.