The Philippine House has passed a bill to ban the privatization of public hospitals

The Philippine House has passed a bill to ban the privatization of public hospitals. There were efforts to privatize the state-run Philippine Orthopedic Center (POC) in 2015 but they were defeated by widespread public protests. “The bill defines privatization as a process in which non-government actors become increasingly involved in the financing and the provision of health care services which includes outright sale, public-probate partnership, corporatization, contracting out of equipment, joint venture, franchising, management control and leasing and user changes. Likewise, the bill provides that at least 90 percent of the total bed capacity of all public hospitals should be allotted for indigent or poor patients. ‘This will address the lack of access and inequality in health care brought about by the privatization of public health services,’ the Committee Report on the measure read.” For a third violation of the law, that person will be perpetually disqualified from holding any public office.