Senate amends antihospital detention law

MANILA, Philippines — The Senate on Monday approved on third and final reading a bill that aims to strengthen the protection of patients and their relatives by preventing their detention in hospitals and medical facilities over unpaid bills or medical expenses.

A total of 18 senators voted in favor of Senate Bill (SB) No. 1511, or the Enhanced Anti-Hospital Detention Act, which seeks to amend Republic Act (RA) No. 9439 or the law prohibiting hospitals and clinics from refusing to discharge patients who are unable to pay for treatment.

No one voted against the bill while Sen. Panfilo Lacson was the lone abstention as he is a founding member of a hospital in his home province of Cavite.

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READ: Hontiveros wants stiffer penalties for hospitals detaining patients

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Expanded coverage

SB 1511 expanded the coverage of RA 9439 to include not just patients but also their relatives, representatives, caregivers as well as newborn babies who might be held hostage over unpaid bills. It also strengthens the rules requiring the release of deceased patients despite unsettled obligations.

In addition, SB 1511 raises the penalties against responsible hospital officers or employees from P100,000 to P300,000 or imprisonment of up to two years and four months. Hospital directors or officers who implement an established policy of illegal detention could face fines of P500,000 to P1 million and imprisonment of four to six years.

Three repeated violations committed under such a hospital policy could lead to revocation of the facility’s license to operate.

Balancing act

Sen. Risa Hontiveros, the bill’s principal author and sponsor, said that it seeks to balance the rights of both parties: patients who must be protected from detention while preserving lawful mechanisms for hospitals to recover legitimate obligations for services rendered.

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“We also recognize that our hospitals must remain financially sustainable so they can continue providing care. But this should not come at the expense of patients’ rights. Hospital sustainability and patient rights are not opposing choices,” she added.

According to Hontiveros, debts can be collected “but the dignity and freedom of Filipinos should not be used as collateral… their medical records, personal belongings, or even the remains of a deceased person should not be held hostage just because they have an outstanding bill.”

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She also clarified that SB 1511 does not cancel a patient’s unpaid obligation, with the hospital allowed to deduct all uncollected payments from the taxes it should pay to the government.

“For financially incapable patients, the bill provides for a promissory note, which may be secured through mechanisms expressly provided in the law — a mortgage, a contract of guaranty, a deed of assignment of Social Security System or Government Service Insurance System loan proceeds or benefits, or guarantee letters from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) or the Department of Health (DOH),” Hontiveros said.

As for qualified indigent patients, there is still a proper assessment and endorsement, and an adequate guarantee letter from the DOH or DSWD is required.

“So this is not a license to simply walk away from a debt,” she said. “What we are saying is collect debts that need to be collected in a manner consistent with the law. But don’t lock the patient in the hospital just because he or she doesn’t have the money to pay right away.”

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Hontiveros also addressed fears the measure will give hospitals a license to inflate charges, saying that it “requires full transparency in healthcare costs and billing and expressly prohibits hidden or unauthorized charges.” —WITH A REPORT FROM PHILIPPINE NEWS AGENCY