The Department of Health (DOH) said new guidelines for the Medical Assistance for Indigent and Financially Incapacitated Patients (MAIFIP) will be released in February.

“The guidelines are based on President Marcos' strict order prohibiting guarantee letters from elected officials to pay patient bills in hospitals,” the agency posted Saturday afternoon.

The move follows a recommendation by Risa Hontiveros to issue clearer regulations to put an end to “patronage politics” and make the program easier for Filipinos to understand.

For his part, Health Secretary Ted Herbosa said that since the initiative is provided for under Section 19 of the General Appropriations Act, no elected official is allowed to interfere with the fund.

“Because when the fund is released, the job of the legislator is to monitor how it is spent, whether it is given to indigent and financially incapacitated patients,” Herbosa said.

The DOH is also considering including ambulatory care and surgical clinics, eye centers, ophthalmology services, dental services, free-standing dialysis clinics, and FDA-approved medicines under the new regulations.

Funds under MAIFIP are also being recommended to cover zero balance billing.

Herbosa stressed that MAIFIP is intended for financially incapacitated patients not only in DOH hospitals but also those confined in ward and semi-private hospitals.

“A guarantee letter is a letter that a person will give, that he is guaranteeing his hospital debt, the patient's debt. If someone gave a guarantee letter, he should be the one to pay the bill,” Herbosa explained.