PhilHealth: Return of P60-B funds a ‘challenge’ to give better benefits

State health insurer Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) said Monday that it considers the decision of the Supreme Court to order the executive branch to return to them the P60 billion in excess funds as a challenge to improve its services and provide better health benefits for Filipinos. 

PhilHealth spokesperson Israel Francis Pargas said they expect the P60 billion in excess funds transferred to the national treasury to be returned to them by next year, after President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. signs the 2026 national budget. 

“It’s a welcome respite for us because ito, magsusuporta sa lahat ng ating programa para masigurado ‘yung sustainability ng ating program—ito ‘yung ating pagpapalawak ng ating mga benepisyo at pagpapaganda ng ating serbisyo,” Pargas said in an Unang Balita interview. 

(It's a welcome respite for us because this will support all our programs to ensure the sustainability of our program—this includes the expansion of our benefits and improvement of our service.) 

“But…this will also pose as a challenge for PhilHealth because kailangan naming tapatan ‘yung tiwala na ibinibigay sa amin ng Korte Suprema at ng mamamayan, na ‘yung bawat piso na ibinibigay sa amin bilang kontribusyon ay dapat matapatan namin ng kaakibat na benepisyo para masigurado ang kalusuguan ng mamamayan,” he added.

(But...this will also pose as a challenge for PhilHealth because we have to protect the trust given to us by the Supreme Court and the people by seeing to it that every peso that is given to us as a contribution must be accompanied by benefits to ensure the health of the people.) 

In a 136-page decision, the SC En Banc declared void the Special Provision 1(d), Chapter XLIII of the 2024 General Appropriations Act (GAA), Finance Circular No. 003-2024, and the transfer of the P60 billion for having been issued with grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction.

With this, the High Court ordered the Congress, the Department of Finance, and the Executive Secretary to include the P60 billion as a specific item in the 2026 GAA to be returned to PhilHealth.

To recall, PhilHealth was previously ordered to return P89.9 billion excess funds to the national treasury. Last year, it already remitted P60 billion before the SC issued a temporary restraining order to halt the transfer of the remaining P29.9 billion

Meanwhile, House Deputy Speaker and Iloilo Representative Janette Garin said the Congress and executive branch have no choice but to follow the directive of the SC to return P60 billion to PhilHealth by including the funds in the 2026 national budget.

“The Supreme Court directive is clear: that Congress include the P60 billion in the 2026 outlay,” the former Health secretary said.

This was in response to the calls of Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David and Social Watch Philippines that the P60 billion should be funded via recovered assets of public officials and contractors tagged in the flood control kickback schemes instead of being funded by the national budget.

“Taking the amount from other sources would be defiance of the Supreme Court. Pinapasama sa budget para siguradong maibabalik sa Philhealth yung pera ng mga miyembro, kaysa maghagilap pa ng pondo kung saan-saan. Mas mabuti na ito, kasi ito’s perang mailalaan sa Philhealth sa pamamagitan ng batas,” Garin added.

(There is wisdom behind funding it under the national budget because this guarantees that the national budget will be able to provide service to the PhilHealth members, rather than scramble as to the fund source of that P60 billion. The better option is for the return of the fund through a law.)

She said it would be unwise to turn down guaranteed funding under the 2026 national budget, given that the recovery of ill-gotten wealth assets does not happen overnight.

“I don’t understand their call for such when it would be better that the funding for PhilHealth is already secure rather than look for other sources. Besides, recovering the frozen assets would go through a complicated and long legal process,” Garin pointed out.

“[And] I doubt if the assets to be surrendered or recovered would even be enough. As of now, only P110 million has been voluntarily turned over by a Bulacan district engineer [Henry Alcantara]. Frozen bank accounts and other assets [of those linked in the flood control mess] are valued at P13 billion  Clearly, those are not sufficient,” she added.

Garin said on top of the P60 billion, the House-approved version of the proposed 2026 budget also includes a P53 billion government subsidy to PhilHealth, hiking the state health insurer’s total allocation to P113 billion.

“Philhealth will get a total of P113 billion - P60 billion in restituted funds and an additional subsidy of P53 billion,” she said.

The lawmaker, however, clarified that the return of PhilHealth funds should not stop the government from its crackdown on the ill-gotten wealth of those involved in the flood control mess.

“Accountability, including restitution, on the part of those involved in the flood control mess should be relentlessly pursued,” Garin said.—with a report from Llanesca Panti/AOL, GMA Integrated News