72 medical groups want health 'pork' scrapped

Warning that it entrenches patronage politics and undermines the country's health insurance system, at least 72 medical and health professional organizations have denounced the P51.6-billion allocation for the Medical Assistance to Indigent and Financially Incapacitated Patients (MAIFIP) in the proposed 2026 national budget.

- By MARK ERNEST VILLEZA

Health Professional Alliance convenor Antonio Dans said the groups were "outraged" after lawmakers allowed the allocation to pass despite a budget deadlock between the Senate and the House.

Dans, a clinical epidemiologist, said the alliance wants the MAIFIP either scrapped or gradually phased out, with its funding allotted instead to the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth).

Calling MAIFIP an "epal fund," he said the alliance is preparing a legal challenge before the Supreme Court in case the aid program, described by critics as a health pork barrel, is approved in its current state.

"Our reading is that the senators gave in to the P51 billion for MAIFIP, and 72 health care professional organizations, including the PMA and PCP, were outraged that this was allowed to happen," he said in an interview on One News' "Storycon" yesterday, referring to the Philippine Medical Association and Philippine College of Physicians.

MAIFIP, according to Dans, poses both legal and moral concerns, as patients in crisis are required to secure guarantee letters from politicians or local officials to cover hospital expenses.

“That is morally demeaning. When you are already in a health crisis, you still have to beg for additional funds. That should not be necessary,” he said.

He stressed that under the Universal Health Care (UHC) law, PhilHealth is meant to be the country’s primary health care payer, guided by evidence, cost-effectiveness, and approved treatment protocols — standards, he said, that MAIFIP bypasses.

“Instead of rights-based coverage, MAIFIP creates a system of patronage where patients feel indebted to politicians,” Dans said.

The groups also warned that MAIFIP diverts funds from PhilHealth, which they said remains underfunded despite expanded benefit commitments.

Dans said they have appealed to President Marcos and Congress to abolish MAIFIP or gradually reduce its allocation until it is phased out.