Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” Lacson said Sunday he will not sign the bicameral conference committee report on the proposed 2026 national budget unless provisions increasing funds for the Medical Assistance to Indigent and Financially Incapacitated Patients (MAIFIP) and allocating billions for allegedly unvetted farm-to-market roads are corrected.
Lacson raised concerns over the decision to raise MAIFIP’s budget to ₱51 billion and to allocate ₱33 billion for farm-to-market roads, citing compliance issues with existing laws and safeguards against political patronage.
“Sorry, unless rectified in its final version, I cannot sign to ratify a bicam report with ₱51 billion for MAIFIP, with nothing but guarantee letters from politicians and not compliant with the Universal Health Care Act,” Lacson said.
“Further, I will not associate myself with the ₱33 billion spending for unplanned and unvetted farm-to-market roads.”
He stressed that health-related funds should be consolidated under the Department of Health’s Universal Health Care (UHC) program to ensure equitable access and proper implementation.
“Unless we adequately fund UHC programs such that they cover all barangay and ensure zero billing, among others, we cannot fully implement the UHC law that we passed,” he said.
“Guarantee letters from politicians will only guarantee patronage politics, not the health care needs of Filipinos, especially the indigents.”
The bicameral panel earlier approved the ₱51 billion MAIFIP allocation—higher than the ₱42 billion in 2025 and exceeding both the House proposal of ₱49 billion and the Senate’s earlier ₱29 billion version.
It also approved ₱33 billion for farm-to-market roads, more than double the ₱16 billion proposed under the National Expenditure Program.
A longtime critic of budget insertions, Lacson said MAIFIP remains vulnerable to political abuse due to the use of guarantee letters. He has filed Senate Bill 404 to integrate MAIFIP into the UHC framework and penalize political manipulation.
He also questioned the source and vetting of the proposed farm-to-market roads, including possible realignments from flood control funds.
The bicameral conference committee is reconciling the Senate and House versions of the 2026 budget, which must be ratified by both chambers before submission to President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.