By Mar-Vic Cagurangan
Variety News Staff

MANILA, Philippines — The Mayors Council of Guam met with executives of St. Luke’s Hospital in Quezon City to figure out faster payment procedures for Guamanians with Medicare, and to set up an arrangement that would allow the treatment of medically indigent patients here.
“St. Luke’s earlier wrote to the Medicare office in Hawaii to allow the hospital to bill Medicare directly or to have direct access to the Medicare system, but they got no response. They figured that if they asked Guam leaders to take up the matter with the Medicare office, their request would have a better chance of being granted,” said Agana Heights Mayor Paul McDonald, who led the Guam delegation that visited Manila last week.
The delegation, which left Manila Friday, met with Marilen Langiton, St. Luke’s Hospital senior vice president for corporate affairs, and Amy Faigal, associate director for billing on Wednesday last week.
“We want to put in motion the required mechanics for Guam residents to receive treatment on both an emergency and regular-procedure basis,” said Robert D.C. Hoffman, vice mayor of Sinajana, the scheduling director of the Guam delegation.
“It’s a good situation for everybody. The federal government saves money, and our residents save time and get treated closer to home,” Hoffman said.
St. Luke’s Hospital has been providing treatment to Guam patients with Medicare coverage. The hospital directly bills the patients who, in turn, apply for Medicare reimbursement.
“If St. Luke’s has direct access to Medicare, then it would simplify and speed up the payment process,” McDonald said in an interview with Variety.
“This system is already being done in Canada and Mexico. We don’t see why it can’t be done here,” Hoffman said.
McDonald and Hoffman also said the council is seeking to establish a system that would allow patients under the Medically Indigent Program to get treatment at St. Luke’s Hospital or other U.S.-accredited hospitals in the Philippines.
The council’s proposal involves the creation of an account from MIP funds, from which the hospital can directly retrieve the payments for services provided to MIP patients. “The current budget allocates $200,000 for MIP, which we can put into an account,” Hoffman said.
“If we succeed in putting this system in place, then we would not have to send our patients to Hawaii and California,” McDonald said.
“It’s a lot more expensive to send patients to Hawaii and California. The fare alone costs about $2,000 per patients,” he added.
McDonald said the government of Guam currently spends $23 million a year on MIP. “If we can send our patients to Manila, it will be lot cheaper and closer,” he said.
St. Luke’s Hospital executives said an average of 450 Guam patients are being treated at the hospital every day. During the mayors’ visit on Wednesday, 25 patients were Guamanians with coverage provided by StayWell, NetCare or Calvo’s SelectCare.
St. Luke’s Hospital is an attractive alternative for medical care for the Marianas because of its relative closeness, and its excellent facilities. St. Luke’s Hospital is the only hospital in the region that holds accreditation by the Joint Commission International and is better equipped than 95 percent of U.S. hospitals.
Seventeen public officials from Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, including several vice mayors, council members and spouses were among the 61-strong group hosted last week by government officials, hospitals and businesses in Manila. Sen. Rory Respicio, D-Agana Heights, and several businessmen from Guam also joined the group.
The assembly of mayors formalized their association with municipal leaders in the Philippines on Tuesday afternoon with the signing of the preamble for the Association of Pacific Island Local Governments and election of officers. The association has been operating informally for the past two years with Manila Mayor Lito Atienza as its interim president.
The delegation also met with U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines Kristie Kenney for about an hour on Thursday afternoon and discussed a wide variety of questions about visas and veterans affairs, among other things.
“You guys are getting ready to explode on Guam with the buildup of the military in the region,” Kenney told the mayors in the visit in the Chucky Parsons Ballroom, which survived the destruction of Manila in World War II, and served as the postwar courtroom for war crimes.
“We really appreciate that you are the U.S. gateway to this region and provide a special place for our military to be based,” Kenney said. She asked if any in the group of 32 were veterans, and 10 raised their hands. She then asked them individually where they had served. Three had served in the Philippines at Subic Bay Naval Base.
Kenney, who had been to Guam on only one occasion, said the embassy in Manila is the only one that houses a Veteran Affairs office outside the U.S. She said $14 to $15 million per week comes to Manila in the way of veterans’ privileges. More than 100 employees at the embassy provide administrative services for veterans.