Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC) in Cebu City to be discharged without paying hospital bills for covered services, provided they meet admission and eligibility requirements.
The policy means patients admitted to basic or ward accommodation receive a statement of account upon discharge showing a zero balance, with no remaining payment, promissory note, or unsettled charges for covered medical services.
VSMMC implemented the policy through Hospital Order No. 160, series of 2025, following the Department of Health’s directive tied to President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s announcement of the program during his fourth State of the Nation Address on July 28, 2025.
“Itinuloy na po natin ang zero balance billing. Libre po. Ibig sabihin, ang serbisyo sa basic accommodation sa ating mga DOH na ospital, wala nang babayaran ang pasyente dahil bayad na ang bill ninyo,” Marcos said.
Hospital officials clarified that Zero Balance Billing is different from PhilHealth’s No Balance Billing policy.
While the latter applies only to PhilHealth sponsored members, ZBB covers all patients admitted under basic accommodation regardless of membership category.
“Ang ZBB is a health facility framework — mas malawak ang coverage. Regardless kung compensable ba ang inyong sakit sa PhilHealth o hindi,” said Ruth R. Tan, deputy head of VSMMC’s Medical Social Work Department.
Under the policy, eligibility depends on two key conditions: the patient must choose basic or ward accommodation upon admission and must undergo assessment by the Medical Social Work Department. Private and semi private rooms are not covered.
Tan said assessment goes beyond financial capacity alone.
“It’s not just about the financial capacity of the patient — we are looking into the psychosocial also,” she said.
Once admitted, patients undergo screening and orientation on coverage and procedures.
Hospital guidelines require that medicines and supplies for ZBB patients be provided by VSMMC, with additional support sourced through government assistance programs if needed.
Upon discharge, the hospital targets a four hour turnaround time to release a zero balance statement of account, which is delivered directly to the patient’s bedside. “Gone are the days of long queues at billing.
The statement is brought to your bedside,” Tan said.
Hospital billing follows a hierarchy of funding sources, starting with PhilHealth case rates, followed by government assistance programs such as MAIFIP and the Cancer Assistance Fund, with remaining costs covered through other public funding mechanisms.
Patients are advised to request basic or ward accommodation at admission, comply with assessment procedures, and avoid opting for private rooms if they wish to qualify for the program. Direct payments to individuals for covered services are also prohibited under hospital policy.
VSMMC is among several Department of Health retained hospitals in Central Visayas implementing Zero Balance Billing, alongside Don Emilio del Valle Memorial Hospital, Eversley Child Sanitarium and General Hospital, Gov. Celestino Gallares Memorial Medical Center, St. Anthony Mother and Child Hospital, and Cebu South Medical Center.
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