UHC LAW IMPLEMENTATION

Roque urges PhilHealth's Morales to ‘engage in self-examination’

After Ricardo Morales challenged Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque to have him replaced as Philippine Health Insurance Corporation president, Roque on Friday urged the former military officer to assess whether he should continue serving at the PhilHealth.

“I enjoin cavalier Morales to engage in self-examination whether he has made our people trust PhilHealth and whether his continued service in the agency would be a service to this nation which we both love so dearly, or whether his talents can be better utilized elsewhere,” Roque said.

Roque earlier argued that Morales’ suggestion that the implementation of the Universal Health Care program be delayed due to a looming budget deficit brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic had no legal basis.

He reminded PhilHealth officials to implement the law, which was passed only last year, or else the national government would have to look for managers who could accomplish the task.

Morales said earlier in an interview on ANC said that he had no problem if someone else would be tapped to implement the Universal Health Care Law even as he pointed out that Roque was not the President, who was the appointing authority.

PhilHealth  corruption

Roque also accused Morales of inaction on alleged corruption at the PhilHealth, which the latter disputed.

“It is tragic that Mr. Morales is taking things personally. This is not about me being the presidential spokesperson. This is about President [Rodrigo] Duterte’s appointing Mr. Morales to fix the organization and eliminate corruption,” Roque said.

The Palace spokesman also took exception to Morales’ statement that Roque should file cases in court if he had evidence of corruption against certain PhilHealth officials and employees.

“Mr. Morales has the wrong view that only the courts can remove scoundrels in PhilHealth; when in truth, he has administrative powers to suspend and remove them. Worse, he takes advice from lawyers who are the ones responsible for the pitiful plight of the agency,” he said.

Roque said PhilHealth denied him access to documents that would serve as evidence against people who allegedly allowed the misuse of PhilHealth funds to pay for the dialysis treatments of non-existent patients.

“The National Privacy Commission had to opine what any person should know: That internet privacy is not a shield from investigation for graft and corruption,” he said.

Roque served as legal counsel to the whistleblowers in the alleged scam. — DVM, GMA News