Senator Erwin Tulfo is pressing the Department of Health (DOH) for answers following reports that indigent patients are being denied guarantee letters (GLs), even at government hospitals.
Tulfo said several patients referred by his office to the DOH were simply told to “come back another day.”
“There’s a patient who wanted to be treated at the Philippine Heart Center but was told to return another day,” he said. “Another indigent patient needing urgent care at the National Kidney Transplant Institute was told to ‘just wait for a bit.’ This is unacceptable. For someone who is sick, every second counts. Asking them to wait is not an option.”
The senator urged transparency. “If you no longer have funds for indigent patients, say so. Don’t give them false hope. These people didn’t choose to get sick–let’s not make their burden heavier,” according to him.
Tulfo questioned how the situation came to be, stressing that Congress had allocated sufficient funding under the Medical Assistance to Indigent and Financially Incapacitated Patients (MAIFIP) Program.
He also cited reports from Region IV-A, particularly in Batangas, where some private hospitals are considering halting acceptance of GLs due to P530 million in alleged unpaid claims.
“We want answers… where are the funds? Was it used during the elections? Or was the MAIFIP funds mismanaged?”IMT
