Companies and business owners who put utmost importance on the welfare of their employees usually provide Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) plans to help lessen the financial impact of medical care and hospitalization.

That is because HMOs act as a safety net and a buffer against expensive medical bills and hospitalization costs.

However, other expenses such as out-patient medicine and transportation bills are not usually covered by the standard HMO plans and even PhilHealth. On top of this, employees who get hospitalized, especially those who have already used up their allotted sick leaves, suffer loss of income simply because they are unable to go to work.

Take for example an employee who is the sole breadwinner of his family. If he gets sick and needs to be admitted to the hospital, he naturally will have to take a leave from work. Even if his HMO will cover hospital bills, there are additional expenses he will have to shell out money for, including transportation, health maintenance products and food expenses.

So, in addition to worrying about his illness, the sick employee will also have to think about these extra expenses, and pray that his illness won’t linger so he can go back to work as soon as possible. All these worries can make it harder for the patient to rest and recover.

Employers, on the other hand, may have to deal with emergency loan requests and last-minute cash advances of employees which are often not part of the company’s standard benefit policy, and this may take time to approve and process.

To ensure that companies and business owners prepare their employees in the event of hospitalization, it is a wise decision for them to explore add-ons to their HMO plans.

Maxicare Healthcare Corporation, one of the pioneers in the HMO industry, is offering a timely new add-on to its HMO plans called Maxicare Hospicash.

Maxicare Hospicash is a daily hospital income benefit that provides protection for both employers and employees from the additional financial burden that comes with getting hospitalized. It can be added to Maxicare Corporate and SME plans with coverage of one year from the effective date or depending on the member's plan.

According to Maxicare President and CEO Sean Argos, "Through Maxicare Hospicash, we want to give both employees and employers peace of mind and a feeling of security. Getting hospitalized is very expensive nowadays. We are offering this product to help employers ease the financial burden of their valued employees."

Maxicare Hospicash offers the following benefits:

A daily hospital income cash benefit

Members can receive up to P5,000 daily hospital income benefit per day of hospitalization, which counts from the first day of admission. The total daily hospital income cash benefit will be received four working days after the Maxicare Hospicash member is discharged from the hospital.

In addition, it can also help give assurance and peace of mind to people getting hospitalized as the cash benefit can cover other expenses not included in the company's HMO plan. No need for employees to take out money from their savings. With Maxicare Hospicash, companies and business owners are assured their employees are well covered and can focus on their recovery.

A personal accident benefit for accidental death and accidental dismemberment

No one wants to discuss or talk about accidental death or dismemberment and that is why people seldom plan for them. Maxicare Hospicash provides reassurance to the employee and his family that they will get cash assistance in case the employee is involved in an unfortunate event, such as accidental death or accidental dismemberment.

Hospicash members can get up to P100,000 personal accident benefit per year.

With Maxicare Hospicash, companies and business owners can now provide their employees additional protection for unforeseen circumstances, so they can have peace of mind and can focus on their recovery.

For more information about this new and beneficial add-on to Maxicare's Corporate and SME plans, visit Maxicare’s website.