The Department of Health said four government specialty hospitals will each receive an additional P1 billion under the 2026 national budget, a move aimed at expanding public access to specialized medical care.
The funding covers the Lung Center of the Philippines, the National Kidney and Transplant Institute, the Philippine Heart Center, and the Philippine Children’s Medical Center. All four institutions operate as government owned or controlled corporations.
In a social media post, the Department of Health said the additional allocation will support the expansion of public services and strengthen the implementation of zero balance billing for patients requiring care in government hospitals.
The post included a video of Health Secretary Ted Herbosa, who said the 2026 General Appropriations Act contains a provision granting an additional P1 billion to each specialty hospital. The budget was signed into law earlier this month by President Bongbong Marcos
Herbosa said the funding will reinforce the country’s Universal Health Care program under Republic Act No. 11223 and allow more patients to access complex medical procedures without incurring out of pocket expenses.
Despite the added funding, the specialty hospitals continue to operate under a model in which a majority of beds are allocated to private patients, while a smaller portion is reserved for public cases, consistent with their status as GOCCs.
The Department of Health also reiterated that zero balance billing is now in effect across government hospitals nationwide. Under the policy, patients availing of services in public hospitals are no longer charged additional costs, making guarantee letters issued by public officials unnecessary.
Zero balance billing was first rolled out following the President’s State of the Nation Address in July last year and was initially limited to selected Department of Health hospitals. By the end of the year, the program had benefited more than one million patients, according to the department.
