Senator Christopher “Bong” Go raised questions in the Senate plenary on Thursday, November 7, regarding PhilHealth’s proposed subsidy for 2025 despite the existence of PHP 500 billion reserve fund on top of the PHP 89.9 billion excess funds that was supposed to be transferred to the National Treasury to be used for other purposes if not for the Supreme Court’s issuance of a Temporary Restraining Order.
Go, Chairperson of the Senate Health Committee and Vice-Chair of the Senate Finance Committee, questioned why despite the existence of unutilized excess funds, an additional subsidy of nearly PHP 70 billion will be given to PhilHealth next year.
He proposed that instead of adding to the already substantial funds of PhilHealth that remain unutilized, such resources can be redirected to help public hospitals cater to indigent patients so that Filipinos can directly benefit from it.
Earlier, Go has stated that PhilHealth must not receive an increased subsidy for 2025 unless it improves its operations and healthcare benefits for Filipinos amid billions of unutilized funds still in their coffers. He emphasized that the agency must prioritize the efficient use of its available funds before requesting for additional subsidy in the 2025 General Appropriations Act.
“Marami pong natutulog na pondo sa PhilHealth habang maraming Pilipino ang naghihingalo dahil sa mga hindi kayang bayaran na hospital bills,” Go remarked, pointing out the disparity between the agency’s financial reserves and the insufficient benefits being provided by the state’s health insurer.
During the deliberations on the Department of Finance’s (DOF) 2025 budget, Go directed his queries to Senator Grace Poe, the budget sponsor, emphasizing the potential for reallocating these funds to support underfunded Department of Health (DOH) hospitals across the country instead.
“Sobra-sobra naman po ang pera ng PhilHealth, bakit natin sila bibigyan ng almost PHP 70 billion?” Go asked. He explained that many DOH hospitals are struggling to maintain sufficient funding, impacting their ability to serve low-income patients, especially in underserved regions.
In response, Poe, expressed appreciation for Go’s transparency. “Tama, tama. Actually, Mr. President, thank you for displaying, putting all of those things out in the open,” she said.
Poe echoed Go’s concerns about the high reserve, agreeing that it’s a point of frustration. However, she explained that legislative constraints limit the Senate’s ability to reallocate these funds directly due to existing laws, particularly the sin tax law which mandates that a portion of the excise taxes collected from tobacco products and sugary beverages be allocated to PhilHealth.
However, Poe showed openness to exploring a potential solution. She suggested that a special provision might be added to the budget, allowing for a reallocation to specialty hospitals and if possible, other DOH hospitals as suggested by Go.
Go proposed that additional funds not only support specialty hospitals but also go to other DOH hospitals that have experienced budget cuts. “Not only to specialty hospitals, Mr. President, Madam Sponsor, pati po sa mga DOH hospitals,” Go insisted.
“Nandun halos ‘yung mga mahirap nating kababayan, lalung lalo na po sa Mindanao at Visayas, mga DOH hospitals,” he added.
Go highlighted the plight of these hospitals, underscoring the essential support they provide for low-income citizens and emphasizing the strain on their limited resources due to high patient volumes.
“Sa sobrang dami po ng pasyente, nagre-request po sila ng additional budget para dito sa mga DOH hospitals,” he said. “Not only limited sa mga specialty hospitals such as NKTI (National Kidney and Transplant Institute), (Philippine) Heart Center. Nabanggit n’yo po na you realigned some budget from PhilHealth to specialty hospitals. Baka pwedeng isama n’yo rin po ‘yung mga ibang hospitals, government hospitals, mga DOH hospitals.”
Seeing the need for a balanced approach, Go reminded his colleagues that a similar action was taken the previous year, reducing the proposed budget for PhilHealth by PHP 40 billion to be used for other health-related purposes.
“Ang takot ko rito, Madam Sponsor, baka next year, pag sumobra na naman ang reserve fund ng PhilHealth dahil sa collection ng taxes, dahil sa batas na ipinasa natin, eh baka mawalis na naman po ito,” he said, underscoring his desire for long-term improvements in health funding.
Earlier, Go expressed strong commendation for the Supreme Court’s issuance of a temporary restraining order (TRO) blocking the transfer of PhilHealth’s excess funds to the National Treasury.
“Ang pondo ng PhilHealth ay para sa Health!” Go reiterated. While appreciative of the TRO, Go stressed that this is merely a step in his ongoing efforts to ensure that PhilHealth fully delivers on its commitments to Filipinos.
“Dapat sa PhilHealth pa lamang ay hindi na natutulog ang kanilang pondo para hindi ito mawalis papuntang Treasury lalo na’t napakaraming mga Pilipino ang naghihingalo at nangangailangan ng tulong pampagamot,” Go explained.
Meanwhile, PhilHealth has also officially committed to assure implementation of their promises such as recommending the reduction of premium contributions; increasing case rates; expansion of benefit packages especially for the top 10 mortality diseases; provision of free medicines and assistive devices, such as eyeglasses and wheelchairs; inclusion of dental, visual, emergency and preventive care; as well as updating policies to meet the needs of Filipinos.
Go has pressed PhilHealth to accelerate its other reforms following the long-overdue scrapping of the Single Period of Confinement (SPC) policy last month. While its removal was a significant step triggered by Go’s consistent appeals for reform, he has also brought to light the 24-hour confinement rule, which required patients to be hospitalized for at least a day to qualify for insurance coverage. PhilHealth officials have also committed to revisit and remove this rule.
“Pera po ito ng taumbayan, bawat piso ay pinagpaguran. Dapat po itong gamitin sa paraan na talagang makikinabang ang mga mamamayan,” Go said.
