Docs up in arms over withheld PhilHealth fees

Two big medical organizations on Friday rallied behind doctors and health workers of the Tarlac Provincial Hospital (TPH) who have been protesting the withholding of their pooled professional fees from the state-owned insurance company.

At a press conference on Friday, the 80,000-strong Philippine Medical Association (PMA) and the Philippine College of Physicians (PCP) urged the national government to step into the conflict before it gravely affects the delivery of services to patients and the training of doctors in the hospital.

Some of the protesting TPH doctors and nurses joined the conference.

PMA president Minerva Calimag said the group is opposing any move by local government units (LGUs) to appropriate to themselves professional fees payable to physicians made by PhilHealth through government hospitals.

Calimag said these actuations are illegal and in contradiction to Republic Act No. 1606 or the Amended PhilHealth Law, which allows government hospitals to retain and pool payments for professional services to be distributed among health personnel.

New scheme

“Continued violations of the law by local government units will drive away physicians from the government sector to the more lucrative private sector and precariously tip the balance of health manpower resources in the country,” he said.

The new scheme is being implemented by Tarlac Gov. Victor Yap and the hospital’s officer in charge, Leonardo Mangahas Jr.

Calimag called on the Department of Interior and Local Government to issue the requisite circular directing all LGUs to respect the law by refraining from taking custody of the professional service fees and to allow government hospitals to distribute these fees among health personnel based on computations in circulars issued by PhilHealth.

Anthony Leachon, PMA advocacy chair, said the government must address the TPH crisis as this reflects the real situation of the country’s healthcare system.

He said that while the health budget increased from P28.7 billion in 2010 to P205 billion in 2015, the number of Filipinos dying without seeing a healthcare worker has increased from 45 percent to 66 percent.

“This is about the most valued assets of the healthcare system—the health workforce…The problem in the TPH is the tipping point of the health workforce crisis,” said Leachon.

For years, doctors and nonmedical workers of TPH had been augmenting their salaries by dividing among themselves 30 percent of reimbursements from the PhilHealth. But in May, Yap made a move to amend the manner of the distribution of the pooled fees, reducing the amount to just 2 percent, citing local autonomy.

Precedent

Since March 16, a total of 32 million in pooled professional fees have been withheld by the provincial hospital.

But the TPH health workers have joined ranks to keep the status quo to avoid setting a precedent for public hospitals like the TPH that were devolved from the Department of Health to LGUs.

Antonita de Pano, spokesperson of the TPH Doctors Association, yesterday told reporters that the group has already sent a letter to Health Secretary Janette Garin asking for guidance on the matter. But they have yet to hear from the health chief.

“This is not just about Tarlac. This is not just about professional fees, but about principle, a right provided by law…This is about local government hospitals robbing all healthcare workers of their rights and just compensation. This is about demoralization and breakdown of healthcare services. This is just the tip of the iceberg,” said De Pano.

She also claimed that the issue has now been compounded with harassment, coercion and violation of human rights.

“At this point, healthcare workers are demoralized,” she said. Jocelyn R. Uy