Following the Department of Health's rejection of shifting MAIFIP funds to PhilHealth, 68 health professional groups led by the Healthcare Professionals Alliance Against COVID-19 urged President Marcos and Congress to sufficiently fund the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. and phase out the DOH's Medical Assistance for Indigent and Financially Incapacitated Patients program.
In a statement issued yesterday amid ongoing 2026 budget debates—where Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa rejected redirecting MAIFIP's P51 billion allocation to PhilHealth over payment delays—the country's medical societies called for bolstering PhilHealth funding while gradually reducing reliance on MAIFIP. "The government should move beyond promises of greater health benefits and ensure adequate funding to fulfill these commitments," the groups stated.
The bicameral conference committee on House Bill 4058 approved P69.78 billion for PhilHealth premiums for the poor (up P16.52 billion), but this falls short of Universal Health Care Act requirements to fully subsidize premiums for 24.5 million indirect contributors, necessitating at least P147 billion total for PhilHealth.
While acknowledging MAIFIP's expansion to 1.2 million Filipinos, the groups stressed it should not undermine insurance for the 24.5 million indigent. They criticized MAIFIP for shifting from a rights-based system to one dependent on individual discretion, eroding UHC safeguards on cost-effectiveness, affordability, and equity.
Signatories include the Philippine Medical Association, Philippine College of Physicians, Philippine College of Surgeons, Philippine Association of Medical Technologists, Philippine Society of Medical Oncology, Private Hospitals Association of the Philippines, and others.
