HMO liquidity requirement slightly increased         

The Insurance Commission (IC) has raised the liquidity requirement for health maintenance organizations (HMOs), albeit by just a small amount, to give the loss-making industry more time to recover.

In a circular letter, IC commissioner Reynaldo Regalado mandated an increase in the acid test ratio (ATR)—a measure of the ability to pay off short-term liabilities without relying on inventory sales—to 0.9 from 0.75.

According to IC, the industry incurred a net loss of P4.27 billion last year, bringing the total net loss since 2022 to P5.71 billion.

“Our analysis shows that even though the industry recorded a net income of P636.6 million in the second quarter, this is still far from recovering the cumulative losses the industry sustained in 2022 and 2023,” Regalado said in a statement. “.. this is why we extended the regulatory relief from 1.0 ATR requirement, albeit with a marginal increase from 0.75 to 0.9, which we believe reflects the industry’s progress in terms of profitability while still acknowledging that they are still in recovery,” Regalado said.

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ATR is computed by dividing the company’s current assets (cash and other liquid assets) by current liabilities (claims payables, reserves, health fund, administrative service liabilities and other obligations).

According to the circular, if the ATR is more than 0.9 but less than 1.0, HMOs are required to submit a schedule of claims payable along with a claims settlement plan. If the ATR is below 0.9, the HMOs will be required to infuse cash or collect long-term receivables or liquidate noncurrent assets to improve fiscal consolidation.

HMOs will be required to provide monthly updates of settled claims to the IC, including proof of payment for all valid claims.

Looking back, IC reduced the ATR to 0.75 last year from 1.0 previously mainly to give the industry some breathing room given the net loss recorded in 2022. This also provided some relief given the increase in healthcare costs and utilization rates last year that severely impacted the financial conditions of several HMOs.

READ: Insurance Commission: HMOs profitable again in first quarter

For the first semester of this year, HMOs bounced back to profitability as its net income reached P636.6 million in the six months. This was a reversal of 153.67 percent from last year’s P1.19 billion shortfall.

Meanwhile, its revenues rose by 22 percent to P38.75 billion as the industry increased its membership fees to P36.57 billion, up by 19 percent from P30.73 billion. The total assets of 25 HMOs authorized by the IC increased by 12.16 percent to P69.27 billion in the first half, while liabilities rose by 13.33 percent to P58.32 billion.

“Right now, the commission is also looking at revising the capitalization requirement for HMOs to ensure responsiveness to the needs of its members but at the same time ensuring viability of the industry, given the HMOs role in assisting Filipinos with healthcare needs,” Regalado added.