Makati Medical Center (MMC), one of the country’s top hospitals, said on Thursday it has kept its hospital fees unchanged and remains committed to doing so despite inflation and fuel price hikes caused by the war in the Middle East.
“We know that in the coming months, due to inflation and all these issues, the prices of delivery services will increase,” said Arnold C. Ocampo, chief financial officer and interim president and chief executive officer (CEO) of MMC, during the press session for the launch of MMC’s WellnessHub.
“But as much as possible, we have kept our prices equal,” he added.
Mr. Ocampo noted that MMC follows a periodic price increase program, where the review and adjustment of its services occurs every two to three years.
Although some suppliers of medicines and medical supplies have raised prices since the start of the war, this was seen as part of a pre-crisis process involving inflation and fuel issues.
However, MMC was able to keep prices constant, said Mr. Ocampo, noting the purchasing power of the hospital given the volume of goods we purchase.
He added that other suppliers also chose not to change their prices.
“As much as possible, we look at our services to see if we can continue. But if not, we make price changes to our services, as usual,” said Mr. Ocampo told. BusinessWorld.
Asked about reports from the Private Hospitals Association of the Philippines, Inc. (PHAPi) that some of its member hospitals may increase certain hospital fees by at least 5% due to high fuel costs, inflation, and the weak peso, Mr. Ocampo said MMC, a member of PHAPi, was not among those using such promotions.
“We have not made such announcements, so, as much as we can, we are trying to fulfill our promises,” he said.
Mr. Ocampo also said that MMC’s current pricing for its services has enough ‘liberty’ to ensure that price increases to suppliers are not immediately passed on to consumers.
To maintain this trend, he said MMC is focusing on increasing “patient demographics” by encouraging more people to seek medical care, such as the newly launched WellnessHub, a one-stop health and care center.
Despite efforts to keep hospital rates stable, Mr. Ocampo said it is still possible that it will increase by the end of the year amid ongoing economic pressure.
“If this fuel crisis continues until the end of the year, there may be a need to increase prices, hopefully at the end of this year,” he said.
If such changes occur, they will generally be from 2% to 3%, said Mr. Ocampo, citing historical expansion. – Edg Adrian A. Eva
