Senator Sherwin Gatchalian said it is imperative to move some of the proposed P49-billion for the Medical Assistance to Indigent and Financially Incapacitated Patients (MAIFIP) to expand the government’s zero-balance billing program.

Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance and who is currently heading deliberations into the proposed 2026 national budget, expressed belief those in need of medical assistance need not queue at politicians’ offices just to avail of such benefits.

“It pains me to see some people, mga constituents natin (our constituents), na pumipila sa mga opisina ng politiko (queueing in offices of politicians),” Gatchalian said.

“We are putting the decision-making power on life and death in the hands of the politicians, which is not the right thing to do because the system should help our constituents,” he lamented.

As chairman of the Senate finance panel, the senator said he believes MAIFIP funds should be moved to the zero-balance billing program of the government.

“We should reform our Universal Healthcare to ensure access to quality health services for all Filipinos without financial hardship,” he added.

The Senate finance panel chief also maintained that the zero-balance billing program and the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) should be enough to help patients in public hospitals.

However, Gatchalian emphasized there is still a need to expand public hospitals’ absorptive capacity. He previously noted that several public hospitals have already exceeded their bed capacity. 

With the government implementing a zero-balance billing program, the lawmaker warned that the current occupancy rate in hospitals will double inevitably.