THE Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office will now include professional fees (PF) in its medical assistance program for indigent Filipinos after a meeting with the House leadership on Wednesday.
During a press briefing, House Deputy Majority Leader for Communications and ACT-CIS Party-list Rep. Erwin Tulfo said that the “breakthrough” move will allow the use of PCSO medical assistance funds as payment of doctors’ fees aside from other expenses such as room and other medicines.
This resolution came from the meeting led by House Speaker Martin Romualdez with other House leaders, the PCSO, and the Philippine Medical Association.
Previously, doctors’ fees were not covered under the PCSO’s medical assistance program, as it only covers room, medicines, imaging requests, and other medical services.
“The PCSO has agreed that they will shoulder the professional fee so that there won’t be any cashouts for indigent patients, even in private hospitals. After a request by the speaker to the Philippine Medical Association, the doctors will accept a guarantee letter from the PCSO as a professional fee,” Tulfo said.
PCSO General Manager Melquiades Robles said that the coverage of professional fees is one step toward making zero-balance billing for indigent patients a reality, as some patients have already experienced paying for their medical bills through different programs of the government, including PhilHealth (Philippine Health Insurance Corp.), MAIP or AICS (Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations).
“Maybe everything else was paid for by PhilHealth, except the professional fee,” Robles said.
Philippine Medical Association president Dr. Hector Santos Jr. said that they were happy to partner with the PCSO on the proposal to use its funds as payment for doctors’ fees.
He said that doctors have always been assured of prompt payments by the PCSO every time there is a request from them.
Robles said that around P3.8 billion was allocated for its medical assistance program in 2024, which will include the payment of doctors’ fees.
The program is targeted to begin on October 30, the National Day of Charity.
Romualdez thanked PCSO for shouldering the professional fees of health care professionals.
“All medical practitioners will [then] be covered by the government under the auspices of the PCSO so that health care will be totally free… that is our aim, and that is what our President, Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. had wanted,” Romualdez said.
The meeting was attended by Romualdez, Santos, Robles and Tulfo, as well as House Senior Deputy Speaker and Pampanga Rep. Aurelio Gonzales Jr., House Committee on Appropriations chairman and Ako Bicol Party-list Rep. Elizaldy Co, House Majority Leader and Zamboanga City Rep. Manuel Jose Dalipe, and ACT-CIS Rep. Edvic Yap.
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