The Philippines has launched a groundbreaking nationwide programme requiring businesses to screen millions of workers for cancer early on. By working with private companies to promote cancer screening, the country hopes to lower cancer rates and late diagnosis.
All employers must have cancer preventive and control programmes under the National Integrated Cancer Control Act. The goal is to make diagnoses and treatments more affordable for employees, who always pay out of pocket.
This innovative strategy requires firms to connect employees to health institutions or provide free workplace cancer screenings. The government believes early detection can improve survival rates; thus, it is shifting from autonomous effort to public-private collaboration.
Home Credit, a financial company that screens employees for cervical cancer, was one of the first successful implementations. From January, workers must collect their own specimens at work under the supervision of qualified nurses or healthcare workers. Employers cannot see medical professionals’ confidential results.
The change is one way to lower cancer treatment costs in the Philippines. Health economist Valerie Ulep found that Filipino cancer patients lose 35 billion pesos ($625 million) per year in medical costs, out-of-pocket expenses, and salaries.
The new plan attempts to close the cost gap and encourage more people to get examined, which speeds up diagnosis. Alvin Curada, Director of the Bureau of Working Conditions, says cancer ranks third in national death and disability, making this a government-private sector partnership. Health advocates support this initiative, but enforcement and policy understanding are concerns. To make cancer screenings broadly available, local government and community-based organisations must support the programme.
