NATION

Ejercito opposes MAIFIP budget hike, urges phaseout

Gabriela Baron · Dec 29, 2025, 9:23 PM

Doctors and nurses attend to a leptospirosis patient at the National Kidney and Transplant Institute (NKTI) in Quezon City on Friday, August 8, 2025. The NKTI reported a rise in leptospirosis admissions amid heavy rains and flooding across Metro Manila. The Department of Health has urged the public to avoid wading through floodwaters and to seek early medical consultation if symptoms appear. — Photo by Analy Labor for DAILY TRIBUNE

Senator JV Ejercito voted in favor of the ratification of the bicameral conference committee report with strong reservations due to the Medical Assistance to Indigent and Financially Incapacitated Patients (MAIFIP) budget increase.

Ejercito said his reservation arose from the steep rise in the budget allocated for the MAIFIP, which has doubled compared to the amount requested in the National Expenditure Program (NEP).

"Although MAIFIP is also helpful while the UHC law is reforming our health system, we should gradually reallocate its funding to provide more opportunities to increase PhilHealth benefits and coverage as well as support the implementation of Zero Balance Billing," Ejercito said in Filipino.

He also called for MAIFIP to be "phased out" while universal PhilHealth benefits are being fixed and improved.

"The focus should not be on increasing MAIFIP funds but on directly investing money in hospitals and PhilHealth. If we want to completely overhaul our healthcare system, we should consider MAIFIP as first aid only," he said.

He explained that the continued increase in MAIFIP funding is a significant detour from the path being taken by the Universal Health Care (UHC) Law.

"We do not want Filipinos to line up and beg for treatment. What the UHC wants are patients who have no outstanding hospital bills and no sense of obligations to politicians," he continued.

“As we approach the 10-year mark of the implementation of the Universal Health Care Law, it is my fervent hope that we choose—and work—to keep its promise: that the health of the Filipino people is protected at all times, and never dependent on who they know or on the availability of discretionary assistance,” he added.

Ejercito further said the ratification of the bicam report on the 2026 national budget is only a step towards a people-centered budget.

He assured that the Senate will continue to do its job to ensure that the budget and its implementation will be free from corruption and that the people’s money will be well spent.