Who is to blame for benefits not granted to senior citizens?

The Commission on Audit (COA) report on hospitals that have not granted P535-million worth of senior citizen discounts (196,695 cases) in 2022 is really very disgusting and alarming.

Consequently, the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) shouldered P113.1 million of the discounts which were not deducted from the total actual hospital charges, including professional fees. The remaining P422.526 million was paid by the other government agencies (local government units or LGUs, Office of the President, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office) extending medical assistance to seniors.

Several factors could have triggered the aforesaid dismal phenomenon:

Senior citizens may not be fully aware of laws that cover them including benefits (12 percent VAT exemption and 20 percent discounts) on hospital bills, including professional fees;

Hospital administration and staff (accounting/cashier) are also either unaware and/or simply refuse to comply with the granting of said discounts to senior citizens;

If senior citizens do not seek clarification/demand for legitimate discounts on their hospital bills, etc. nor file a complaint with the Office of the Senior Citizens Affairs, LGUs, or National Commission on Senior Citizens (NCSC) regarding said violations, the more that said hospitals would be emboldened to continue with this malpractice.

To forestall these alleged “malpractices” by hospital administrators/doctors and empower senior citizens to be more aware and vigilant, I would like to propose the following programs/action plans:

For the NCSC to spearhead massive, thorough, and continuing information dissemination (teleradyo guestings, social media campaigns, etc.) about senior citizen laws/benefits to all hospitals/clinics/doctors/etc. on hospital bills, including professional fees;

For the Food and Drug Administration and Department of Health to proactively disseminate their circulars/advisories affecting senior citizens to all hospitals/clinics/doctors/drugstores

I would like to enjoin our senators and congressmen, relative to the senior citizen laws, to exercise their “oversight committee” functions to summon said hospital owners/administrators to shed light on their alleged noncompliance with granting benefits on hospital bills/charges, including professional fees due to senior citizens.

It is my fervent hope that through these findings, insights, and recommendations, the senior citizens would be further empowered; government agencies would be more resolute in the enforcement/monitoring of senior citizen laws; and for hospital owners/administrators and doctors to be more compliant with granting the 12 percent VAT exemption and 20 percent discounts on hospital bills/charges to seniors.

I am pretty confident that “tripartism,” as a strategy, would help pinpoint the real violators/culprits who are not complying with the proper implementation of the senior citizen laws/benefits and subsequently, be held responsible/accountable.

Emiliano M. Manahan Jr.,

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