The Philippine Medical Association (PMA) monitors the behavior of medical practitioners in the interest of public welfare. But it also runs to the rescue of its members when they encounter problems in the delivery of healthcare.
On March 30, 2012, a story appeared in the Inquirer which reported that Dr. Cynthia Theresa Rimando has been accused of not issuing to a patient receipts for consultation fees, an omission which, if confirmed, could make her liable to tax evasion and other charges.
It appears that Doctor Rimando has two offices, one at Marikina Valley and the other at the Balagtas Doctors Hospital (BDH) in Balagtas, Bulacan. Her Marikina patients were issued the corresponding receipts for payments made. Her BDH patients, however, were billed by the cashier of the hospital and were issued receipts by the hospital. Doctor Rimando collected her fees from the BDH cashier and reported them to her accountant who recorded them and prepared the doctor’s tax declaration and payment. The doctor has paid religiously her taxes through the BIR district office.
Unfortunately, BIR investigators who acted on Emily Ann Guansing’s report that Doctor Rimando did not issue her a receipt were from the BIR head office and did not coordinate with the BIR district office that received Doctor Rimando’s tax payments. Hence, the miscommunication.
The BIR investigation into Doctor Rimando’s alleged failure to properly pay her taxes is still to be completed. According to Dr. Oscar Tinio, PMA president, the PMA has a working arrangement with the BIR, wherein physicians with tax problems are to be given an opportunity to explain before their cases are made public. This agreement between the PMA and BIR will be put to the test in the days to come.
—SANTIAGO A. DEL ROSARIO, MD
Commissioner on ethics
Philippine Medical Association