FOURTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC) 
First Regular Session 
OF THE PHILIPPJNES 
SENATE 
S. B. No. 3 
Introduced by Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
The offering and operation of health plans is a growing and profitable industry in the 
Philippines. Many organizations are either engaged in this business or subscribe to one. People 
subscribe to these health plans and pay substantial sums for guaranteed access to quality health 
care when they need it. 
One of the critical factors that ensure quality health care is a patient's access to all 
relevant information necessary to make appropriate decisions about their health care. Open 
medical coinmunication between health care providers and their patients is a key to prevention 
and early diagnosis and treatment, as well as to informed consent and quality, cost-effective care, 
therefore open medical communications are in the best interests of patients. It is critical that 
health care providers continue to exercise their best medical, ethical, and moral judgment in 
advising patients without interference from health plans. 
This bill seeks to establish a national standard that prolects medical communications 
between health care providers and patients.* 
' This bill was originally filed during the Thirteenth Congress, First Regular Session. 


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FOURTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC 1 
OF THE PHILIPPINES 
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First Regular Session 
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SENATE 
S.B. No. “?.2 
Introduced by Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago 
AN ACT 
PROTECTING CERTAIN TYPES OF MEDICAL COMMUNICATIONS 
BETWEEN A HEALTH CARE PROVIDER AND A PATIENT 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Repvesentatives of the Philippines in Congress 
assenz bled. 
SECTION 1. Shovt Title. - This Act shall be known as the “Patient’s Right to Know 
Act.” 
SECTION 2. Definitions of Terms. -For the purposes of this Act, the term: 
(A) “Health Care Provider” means anyone licensed or certified under Philippine law to 
provide health care services and who is operating within the scope of such license; 
(B) “Health insurance issuer” means any company, corporation, association or 
organization that offers any policy, contract or agreement that stipulates to provide 
for the insured either medical attention, medicine, care during disability, or money 
necessary €or any such purposes; and 
“Health plan” means a group health plan and any individual health insurance 
operated by a health insurance and includes any other health care coverage provided 
through a private or public entity. In the case of a health plan, that is an employee 
welfare benefit plan, any third parly administrator or other person with 
responsibility for contracts with health care providers under the plan shall be 
considered, for purposes of enforcement under this section, to be a health issuer 
operating such health plan; and 
(C) 
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(D) “Medical communication” means any communication made by a health care 
provider with a patient of the health care provider or the guardiaa or legal 
representative of such patient with respect to - 
(1) The patient’s health status, medical care, or legal treatment options; 
(2) Any utilization review requirements that may affect treatment options for the 
patient; or 
(3) Any financial incentives that may affect the treatment of the patient. 
The term does not include a communication by a health care provider with a 
patient of the health care provider or the guardian or legal representative of such 
patient if the communication involves a knowing or willful misrepresentation by such 
provider. 
SECTION 3. Prohibition of Interference with Certain Medical Communications. - 
(A) Prohibition. - 
(1) General Rule. - The provisions of any contract or agreement, or the operation 
of any contract or agreement, between an entity operating a health plan (including any 
partnership, association, or other organization that enters into or administers such a 
contract or agreement) and a health care provider (or group of health care providers) shall 
not prohibit or restrict the provider from engaging in medical communications with his or 
her patient. 
(2) Nullification. - Any contract provision or agreement described in paragraph 
(1) shall be null and void. 
(3) Prohibition on Provisions. - Effective on the date described in Section 7, a 
contract or agreement described in paragraph (1) shall not include a provision that 
violates paragraph (1). 
(B) RuZes of Construction. -Nothing is this Act shall be construed - 
(1) To prohibit the enforcement, as part of a contract or agreement to which a 
health care provider is a party, of any mutually agreed upon terms and conditions, 
including terms and conditions requiring a health care provider to participate in, and 
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cooperate with, all programs, policies, and procedures developed or operated by a health 
plan to assure, review, or improve the quality and effective utilization of health care 
services, if such utilization is according to the guidelines or protocols that are based on 
clinical or scieiitific evidence and the professional judgment of the provide, but only if 
the guidelines or protocols under such utilization do not prohibit or restrict medical 
coinmunicatioiis between providers and their patients; or 
(2) To permit a health care provider to misrepresent the scope of benefits covered 
under a health plan or to otherwise require the plan to reimburse providers for benefits 
not covered under the plan. 
SECTION 4. Penalty Clause. - An entity operating a health plan in the Philippines that 
violates Section 3(A) shall be subject to a fine of up to Two Hundred Thousand Pesos 
(P200,OOO.OO) for each such violation. 
SECTION 5. Separability Clause. - If any provision or part hereof, is held invalid or 
unconstitutio~ial, the remainder of the law or the provision not otherwise affected shall remain 
valid and subsisting. 
SECTION 6. Repealing Cluuse. - Any law, presidential decree or issuance, executive 
order, letter of instruction, administrative order, rule or regulation contrary to or inconsistent 
with, the provision of this Act is hereby repealed, modified or amended accordingly. 
SECTION 7. Efectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its 
publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation. 
LI 
Approved, 
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