Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila

Seventeenth Congress
First Regular Session

4
House BILL No, 4486

Introduced by Honorable Michelle M. Antonio

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The right to health is a basic human right guaranteed and protected by
our own Constitution:

“The State shall protect and promote the right to health of the people
and instill health consciousness among them.” (Article Il, Section 15)

“The State shall adopt an integrated and comprehensive approach to
health development which shall endeavor to make essential goods,
health and other social services available to all the’ people at
affordable cost. There shall be priority for the needs of the
underprivileged sick, elderly, disabled, women, and children. The State
shall endeavor to provide free medical care to pauper,” (Article XIII,
Section 11)

In pursuance of these constitutional mandates, several laws were
enacted to protect the citizens” right to avail of health services at an
affordable cost, R.A, 9439 or the Anti-Hospital Detention Act was passed in
2007 to make it unlawful for any hospital or medical clinic to detain or to
otherwise cause, directly or indirectly, the detention of patients who have
fully or partially recovered or have been adequately attended to or who may
have died, for reasons of non-payment in part or in full of hospital bills or
medical expenses

However, the problem persists. Hospitals and other health facilities still
continue to engage in the unlawful practice of detaining patients due to non-
payment of hospital bills. In effect, the patients’ bills keep getting bigger and
bigger as cach day passes, making the burden heavier for the poor patients


and their families. Even middle-class and well-off individuals and families
end up becoming impoverished after they or their loved ones are hospitalized,
Sadly, the worst case scenarios also happen - the patients die and the
hospitals refuse to release the body of the dead patients because of the
inability of the estate of the deceased or the family of the patient to pay the
entire hospital bills. These poor people are prevented from being buried
properly by their loved ones.

This measure seeks to increase the penalties for the detention of
patients in health facilities for nonpayment of hospital bills and medical
expenses. It also revokes the license of the health facilities upon three
repeated violations.

With this bill in place, the true spirit behind the abovementioned
constitutional mandates will be attained.

In view of the foregoing, approval of this bill is highly recommended.

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iCHEX,LE M. ANTONIO



Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila

Seventeenth Congress
First Regular Session

; 4436
HOUSE BILL NO,

Introduced by Honorable Michelle M. Antonio

AN ACT INCREASING THE PENALTY FOR THE DETENTION OF
PATIENTS IN HOSPITALS AND MEDICAL CLINICS ON GROUNDS OF
NONPAYMENT OF HOSPITAL BILLS OR MEDICAL EXPENSES,
THEREBY AMENDING SECTION 3 OF R.A. 9439

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress

assembled:

SECTION 1. ~ Section 3 of R.A. 9349, entitled “An Act Prohibiting the Detention of
Patients in Hospitals and Medical Clinics on Grounds of Nonpayment of Hospital Bills
ot Medical Expenses” is hereby amended to read:

“SEC. 3. Any officer or employee of the hospital or medical clinic responsible
for releasing patients, who violates the provisions of this Act shall be punished
by a fine of not less than Fifty thousand pesos (P50,000.00), but not more than
One hundred thousand pesos (P100,000.00), or imprisonment of not less than
one month, but not more than six months, or both such fine and imprisonment,
at the discretion of the proper court. Provided, however, That if such violation
was committed pursuant to an established policy of the hospital or clinic or upon
instruction of its management, the director, officer of such hospital or clinic
responsible for the formulation and implementation of such policy shall suffer
imprisonment of four (4) to six (6) years, and/or a fine of not less than Five
hundred thousand pesos (500,000.00), but not more than One million pesos


(P1,000,000.00), or both, at the discretion of the court, without prejudice to
damages that may be awarded to the patient-complainant.

Further, upon three repeated violations committed pursuant to an established
policy of the hospital or clinic or upon the instruction of its management, the
health facility’s license to operate shall be revoked by the Department of Health
(DOH), The President, Chairman, Board of Directors or Trustees, and other
officers of the health facility shall be solidarily liable to any damages that may
be awarded to the patient-complainant.”

SECTION 2. SEPARABILITY CLAUSE - If any provision or section of this Act or
the application thereof to any person or circumstances is held invalid, the other
provisions or sections of this Act shall remain valid, and the application of such
remaining provisions or sections to the other persons or circumstances, shall not be
affected thereby

SECTION 3. REPEALING CLAUSE - All provisions of Republic Act No. 9439 and
any other provisions inconsistent with the provision of this Act are hereby amended

accordingly
SECTION 4. EFFECTIVIT

- This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days from the
date of its publication in the Official Gazette or in at least two (2) newspapers of general
circulation,

Approved,