Camille Naredo

Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa speaks to members of the media after the turn-over ceremony and 125th anniversary at the DOH Headquarters in Manila  on June 19, 2023. Mark Demayo, ABS-CBN News/File

Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa speaks to members of the media after the turn-over cermony and 125th anniversary at the DOH Headquarters in Manila  on June 19, 2023. Mark Demayo, ABS-CBN News

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DEPT of HEALTH

Katrina Domingo

ABS-CBN News

<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/176777819445620230619-doh-125th-anniversary-MD-16 (1).jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" alt="Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa speaks to members of the media after the turn-over ceremony and 125th anniversary at the DOH Headquarters in Manila on June 19, 2023. Mark Demayo, ABS-CBN News/File" width="960"/>Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa speaks to members of the media after the turn-over ceremony and 125th anniversary at the DOH Headquarters in Manila  on June 19, 2023. Mark Demayo, ABS-CBN News/File</div>MANILA — The Department of Health (DOH) on Wednesday said that Filipinos seeking medical assistance do not have to course their requests for aid through politicians as the “law prohibits guarantee letters.”The DOH will release the new guidelines for the Medical Assistance to Indigent and Financially Incapacitated Patients (MAIFIP) “by the end of the month or by mid-February,” Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa told Palace reporters.“You know constituents are free to ask assistance from their elected officials, but do they need a guarantee letter from them to get assistance? No,” he said.“They can go straight to the Department of Health and we will help them if they need help and if we have the funds, we will provide the funds if they are qualified to get the funds,” he said.“The law actually prohibits a guarantee letter.”Under the 2026 General Appropriations Act, politicians have been explicitly prohibited from having any “involvement in the distribution of cash and other forms of financial assistance” as a response to public clamor against patronage politics in the disbursement of medical aid.<div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/12/28/patronage-politics-no-more-politicians-barred-from-cash-non-cash-assistance-2126">READ: Patronage politics no more? Politicians barred from cash, non-cash assistance</a></div>But the law only expresses a clear ban on the “distribution” of any cash aid, leaving questions on whether or not Section 19 also covers the issuance of payment guarantee slips from politicians.<div>POLITICIANS WILL PAY FOR GUARANTEE LETTERS ISSUED</div>Politicians can still write request letters on behalf of beneficiaries, but they will have to shoulder the amount that they guaranteed to pay for, Herbosa said.“If you will write me a letter and you want someone, the DOH, to help your constituents, we will help them. Hindi siya GL, that’s a request,” he said.“The senator can guarantee pero sila magbayad noon. I can write a guarantee for you but the one who writes the guarantee pays for it,” he said.Hospitals that are not under the DOH, on the other hand, have the discretion on whether or not to accept guarantee letters from politicians, Herbosa said.The government’s Zero Balance Billing Program ensures that Filipinos who will be admitted to government hospitals need not to shoulder fees even without an endorsement from any politician, the Health Secretary said.<div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/health-science/2026/1/5/doh-wants-lgu-hospitals-included-in-zero-balance-billing-this-2026-1842">READ: DOH wants LGU hospitals included in zero-balance billing this 2026</a></div>“There is no need to go to an elected official if you have a medical problem. You have a medical problem, you go to our government hospital and the government personnel there will take care of you,” he said.“In the future, what we can see is that the MAIFIP will decrease as we were able to increase zero balance billing in both DOH and LGU hospitals,” he said.“Kasi isipin ninyo, hindi mo na kailangan ng MAIFIP kapag zero balance ka sa both LGU and DOH hospital. Just go to the government hospital and if you have money, you go to the private hospital,” he said.The DOH is looking to use the MAIFIP to cover the cost of “basic accommodation and semi-private” rooms in some private hospitals, he said.Meantime, Malasakit Centers may soon be “repurposed” into areas that can help in “patient navigation” or a service that helps patients understand healthcare systems and processes, he said.

The Department of Health (DOH) on Wednesday said that Filipinos seeking medical assistance do not have to course their requests for aid through politicians as the “law prohibits guarantee letters.”

The Department of Health (DOH) on Wednesday said that Filipinos seeking medical assistance do not have to course their requests for aid through politicians as the “law prohibits guarantee letters.”

‘Law prohibits guarantee letters’: Herbosa says politicians cannot source medical aid funds from national budget

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‘Law prohibits guarantee letters’: Herbosa says politicians cannot source medical aid funds from national budget

Katrina Domingo,

ABS-CBN News

Published January 07, 2026 05:33 PM PHT

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Updated January 08, 2026 11:40 AM PHT

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Teodoro Herbosa

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