Southeast Asia stays underinsured, leaning on savings and state aid The Philippines is increasing its insurance buffer against climate-related shocks, with higher penetration, rising property premiums, and a broader mix of catastrophe risk solutions emerging as severe weather events affect Asia. Insurance penetration trends amid regional catastrophe activity According to Aon ’s report, cited by Manila Bulletin , insurance penetration in the Philippines reached 1.85% in the th

Nearly 3m Filipino farmers and fishers are expected to benefit from expanded government-backed insurance coverage following a significant budget increase, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said. Under the 2026 General Appropriations Act, the Philippine Crop Insurance Corp (PCIC) received a PHP6.5bn ($115.8m) allocation, representing a 45% increase from PHP4.5bn in 2025, reported Philippine News Agency. The expanded budget will allow PCIC to insure around 2.93m farmers and fi

The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth), the state insurer of the Philippines, has reported paying more than PHP300bn ($5.07bn) in benefit claims across the country in 2025. According to reports from state-owned media, PhilHealth disbursed PHP300.45bn, with PHP177.7bn allocated to private health facilities and PHP122.75bn to government hospitals between January and December 2025. The figure represents an 81.72% increase compared with 2024, when total benefit

By Michael F. Rellosa On January 27, 2026 , the world will again pause for an unusual ritual: the unveiling of the Doomsday Clock —a symbolic measure of how close humanity is to self-destruction. The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists’ Science and Security Board , joined this year by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Ressa , will announce the new setting and explain why the world is—or is not—moving closer to midnight. The question being asked is simple and unsettling: Will we

Philippine President Marcos has signed the country's PHP6.793tn ($121.3bn) national budget for 2026, restoring government subsidy to the state insurer, the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth). The signing was held on 5 January at Malacañang Palace. Of the total, PHP129.8bn was allocated to strengthen the state insurer, including PHP60?bn that had been wrongfully remitted to the national treasury following a Supreme Court ruling. In 2025, the state insurer rec