A lawmaker recently said that the Duterte administration failed to address the persistent inefficiencies that the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) is currently facing.
In a recent briefing, Tingog Party-list Rep. Jude Acidre said that Duterte’s admin left PhilHealth’s benefit case rates untouched despite inflation healthcare costs rising significantly.
“Labing dalawang taon po, na hindi ni-review ang ating case rates ng PhilHealth. Since 2012 kung ano yung binabayaran ng PhilHealth sa bawat pagkakasakit, sa bawat package, yun pa rin ang binabayaran for the next 12 years until February of this year,” Acierde said.
“Sa buong anim na taon, lalong-lalo na ng Duterte administration… sana naging masigasig ang unang administrasyon sa pag-update ng ating PhilHealth packages,” he added.
Acierde said that the instability within PhilHealth under the previous administration may have worsened the agency’s situation.
According to the lawmaker, Duterte also had several PhilHealth Presidents during his term.
“Napakahirap na magkakaroon ka ng isang Presidente ng PhilHealth every year,” he noted.
In June 2018, Duterte appointed Dr. Roy Ferrer as acting president and CEO, following the resignation of Celestina Ma. Jude de la Serna.
In June 2019, retired Brigadier General Ricardo C. Morales took over the position.
After Morales resigned in August 2020 amid corruption allegations, former National Bureau of Investigation Director Dante Gierran was appointed as the new chief of PhilHealth until the end of Duterte’s term.
Meanwhile, Acidre also raised concerns about the decision to triple the salaries of PhilHealth executives during the Covid-19 pandemic, while members did not receive any corresponding increase in benefits.
The Commission on Audit (COA) previously revealed that the total compensation for PhilHealth’s top executives significantly rose from ₱26.202 million in 2021 to ₱72.244 million in 2022.
“Nakita ko tumaas ang sweldo ng mga Executive Officers ng PhilHealth. Nung panahon ng pandemic, imagine niyo po, ‘yung benefits natin hindi lumaki pero ang sweldo ng mga taga-PhilHealth na Executive Officers nag-triple po,” Acierde said.
Recently, Tingog Partylist retracted its partnership with the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) and the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth), following criticism regarding its decision to overlook agencies that are more pertinent to the initiative.
“DBP, Philhealth and Tingog partylist should rescind their odious MOA. Funding for hospitals and health facilities is desperately needed, yes, but definitely no need for fixers like Tingog, represented by House Speaker Romualdez’s wife Yedda, to dip its dirty fingers in the pie,” Bagong Alyansang Makabayan Chairperson Teddy Casino said in a post on X before Tingog’s withdrawal from the partnership. (TCSP)
