Good news for Filipinos! If you are a member of PhilHealth — the country’s health insurance program — you can now get up to ₱20,000 worth of free medicines every year. This is part of their big new program called PhilHealth GAMOT (Guaranteed and Accessible Medications for Outpatient Treatment).
Think of it like this: PhilHealth will help you get the medicines you need without making you spend so much of your own money. The program covers 75 different kinds of medicines — and you can get them for free, as long as you stay within the ₱20,000 yearly limit.
These medicines are for many common illnesses, such as:
-
Infections (antibiotics and anti-microbial medicines)
-
Asthma and lung problems like COPD
-
Diabetes
-
High cholesterol
-
High blood pressure and other heart problems
-
Nervous system disorders (like epilepsy)
-
Other medicines to support different treatments
Where to Get the Free Medicines
If you are a PhilHealth member, you can go to a PhilHealth YAKAP Clinic. A doctor there will check you and give you a special prescription with a Unique Prescription Security Code (UPSC). This special code lets you claim your free medicine from the following GAMOT Facilities:
-
Vidacure – Branches in Muntinlupa City and Quezon City
-
Generika Drugstore (Pharma Gen Ventures Corp) – Branches in Parañaque City, Navotas City, Quezon City, and Taguig City
-
CGD Medical Depot Inc. – Vertis North
-
Chinese General Hospital
Why This Matters
PhilHealth Acting President and CEO Dr. Edwin M. Mercado said that the program started in 2023, but it was only available in a few provinces back then. Now, they have expanded it nationwide so more Filipinos can get help.
He explained, “It’s the right of every Filipino to get the medicines they need without carrying the heavy burden of paying a lot from their own pocket.”
PhilHealth GAMOT is part of the bigger PhilHealth YAKAP Program, which President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. talked about in his State of the Nation Address. The goal is to make the Philippines a healthier country, where people don’t get sicker just because they can’t afford treatment.
