The barangay health center in Camarin, Caloocan City. (Photo from Facebook)
Apparently, it’s not only the Department of Public Works and Highways thzt is hounded by so-called ‘ghost’ projects as the Department of Health is likewise conducting its own probe on alleged ‘ghost’ health centers and irregularities in the agency’s Medical Assistance to Indigent and Financially Incapacitated Patients (MAIFIP) program.
According to health secretary Teodoro ‘Ted’ Herbosa, they are already looking into anomalies involving the MAIFIP Program, which provides financial assistance for the medical expenses of eligible applicants, citing that “several actions have been taken to do a case build up.”
“We are looking at options to operationalize non-functioning completed health facilities,” Herbosa noted, but did not elaborate.
Just the other week, DoH budget sponsor and Bataan representative Albert Garcia disclose that only 200 out of 600 health centers under the health department’s Health Facilities Enhancement Program (HFEP) are functioning, but these are due to lack of personnel and are not ghost projects.