In a unified stand, former high-ranking government officials and experts have voiced their opposition to the diversion of P89.9 billion from the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) funds to the National Treasury.
“We must hold the PhilHealth leadership accountable. Instead of depriving Filipinos of healthcare funds, PhilHealth must take the necessary steps to promptly and effectively use the funds that exceed reserves for services and benefits of its members,” they said in a joint statement.
The signatories include former National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) secretaries Cielito Habito and Ernesto Pernia, former Department of Budget and Management Secretary Florencio Abad, and former Department of Health Secretary Enrique Ona, among other former officials from various government agencies.
The fund transfer, intended to fund unprogrammed appropriations, has sparked concerns over its potential impact on the country’s healthcare system and its citizens. PhilHealth’s funds, primarily sourced from member premiums, are specified to support the Universal Healthcare Program, ensuring expanded health benefits and reduced out-of-pocket healthcare expenses for Filipinos.
The former high-ranking government officials said the insertion of pork barrel allocations into the 2024 General Appropriations Act (GAA) displaced critical priority projects and led to the diversion of GOCC (Government-Owned and Controlled Corporations) funds.
“The root of the government’s cash sweep of GOCCs lies in the insertion of pork barrel allocations into the 2024 General Appropriations Act (GAA), which displaced essential priority projects. Congress diverted priority projects (e.g. foreign-assisted projects, infrastructure, salary increases for government workers) to the Unprogrammed Appropriations, which have no guaranteed cash cover and can only be tapped when the government exceeds revenue targets,” they said.
“Instead of addressing inefficiencies and waste within the budget, the government is accommodating untimely and wasteful public projects, which could only be beneficial to a select few precisely by raiding PhilHealth’s funds. By all measures, this policy seriously jeopardizes the mandate to promote universal healthcare,” they added.
They explained that these funds are not excess savings, but are the result of PhilHealth’s failure to fully expand its benefit packages. The diversion of these funds, they said, undermines PhilHealth’s mandate and deprives Filipinos of much-needed healthcare support.
The joint statement condemned the notion that public health spending could be sacrificed in favor of other government programs, such as infrastructure projects. According to them, these should be funded by general appropriations, not by reallocating healthcare funds.
The officials expressed concern over the one-size-fits-all approach of the 2024 GAA provision and the Department of Finance (DOF) Circular 2024-003 which allows the tapping of GOCC funds for unprogrammed appropriations.
They emphasized that PhilHealth, along with other exempt GOCCs like the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) and Pag-IBIG, is not mandated to remit dividends to the national government under existing laws. Therefore, any policy to divert its funds undermines its charter and threatens the integrity of its purpose.
The statement also questioned the transparency of the DOF and the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation (PDIC), urging them to disclose details about the resources or income remitted to the national government. They also urged PhilHealth to prioritize the expansion of healthcare benefits for its members
“We urge Finance Secretary Ralph Recto to stop the impending transfer of the remaining P59.9 billion of PhilHealth funds and the funds from other GOCCs like PDIC. And we call on PhilHealth to use its funds to expand benefit packages for all Filipinos,” they said.
They appealed to the Supreme Court to act on the matter, hoping it would uphold the Constitution and protect the interests of all Filipinos.
