MANILA, Philippines — The country’s total health expenditure rose by 17 percent in 2024 as both income and government spending for health care increased.
Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed that the total health expenditures, at current prices, amounted to P1.56 trillion last year, higher than the P1.33 trillion spending in 2023.
The PSA data showed that every Filipino spent an average of P12,751 for health care in 2024, 18 percent higher than the P10,840 expense in 2023.
Total health expenditure accounted for 5.9 percent of the country’s gross domestic product last year, up from 5.5 percent in 2023.
Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. chief economist Michael Ricafort said in an email that the increase could be partly attributed to higher incomes due to improved demographics and employment, which allowed more Filipinos to spend on health care.
He said the expansion and modernization of medical facilities, as well as higher government health care expenditures or coverage, especially for indigent families or citizens also drove the increase.
“These growth trends in the country’s health care-related expenditures have been consistently seen in recent years amid improved incomes, demographics, more medical facilities around the country and more government-related spending or coverage on health care that could still continue for the coming years, as one of the priority expenditures by individuals, households, government and other institutions,” he said.
PSA data showed that current health expenditures accounted for 92.2 percent of total expenditure, while health capital formation cornered a 7.8-percent share.
Current health expenditures grew by 19 percent to P1.44 trillion in 2024 from P1.21 trillion in 2023, while health capital formation expenditure inched up by 1.7 percent to P121.48 billion from P119.45 billion.
Government schemes and compulsory contributory health care financing schemes had the biggest share among the health care financing schemes last year with a 44.7 percent share to the current health expenditure.
Household out-of-pocket payment placed second with a 42.7 percent share, followed by voluntary health care payment schemes with 12.6 percent.
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