For the first time, the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office’s (PCSO) Guarantee Letter can now be used to cover a patient’s doctor’s professional fee, the one item that previously remained unpaid even after PhilHealth, the Medical Assistance for Indigent Patients program, senior citizen discounts, and PWD discounts were all applied to a hospital bill.
However, some private doctors are still refusing to accept the GL for professional fees, PCSO General Manager Melquiades “Mel” Robles said Saturday.
Robles disclosed the innovation in an interview on DZRH News program Special on Saturday on September 19, describing it as one of the most meaningful expansions of the Guarantee Letter system since PCSO began issuing them.
The PCSO general manager said the doctor’s professional fee had long been the most painful remaining gap in the coverage chain: unquantifiable, unaddressed by case rates, and consistently the last item standing after every other form of assistance had been applied.
“Makikita mo talaga ‘yan ang pinakamasakit sa ulo ng mga indigent. They can ask GL, of course there’s PhilHealth and there is MAIP, there is the LGU. Ang kadalasan pong natitira’t naiwan, doctor’s fee. Kasi unquantifiable ‘yan. It is under the administration of President Marcos Jr. na we allowed the guarantee letter to be applied sa doctor’s fee,” Robles said.
Robles said the PCSO’s arrangements are with hospitals, not individual doctors, meaning the GL is addressed to the hospital, which then processes payment to the physician, and this structural gap is where some private doctors push back.
“Marami pong doktor na ayaw tumanggap ng GL for professional fee. Personal experience ko ‘yan, iki-clear muna ng ospital sa doktor kung papayag siyang through GL ‘yung professional fee. ‘Yan ang talagang nakaka-heartbreak ‘yan,” he said.
Robles said the PCSO has a strong payment record, its contract with hospitals requires settlement within 45 days, and its actual average payment time is under 30 days, making the reluctance of some doctors difficult to justify on financial grounds.
The PCSO general manager said the solution may ultimately require legislation, and he has already told doctors directly: if Congress mandates acceptance of the GL for professional fees, there will be no more room to refuse.
