Lawmakers: PhilHealth excess funds could have been used to save more lives

GMA Network

2 days ago

Lawmakers raised concerns over the excess funds that PhilHealth had returned to the Bureau of National Treasury during a hearing of the Senate Committee on Health and Demography on Tuesday.
In the hearing, committee chair Senator Bong Go said that the P89.9 billion excess funds could have been used to increase benefits or coverage for Filipinos.
He reiterated that PhilHealth was an insurance institution instead of a business that needed to build profit, and that their lack of coverage may have pushed Filipinos to refuse treatment due to anticipated expenses.
'Matagal ko na po sinasabi kung ginastos ng PhilHealth ang pondo ninyo noon para sa pasyente, wala na po sana kayong sobrang pondo na ibinalik sa National Treasury. Kung ginamit niyo ang inyong pondo to expand benefit packages and increase case rates, ilang pasyente na po ang nasalba o ilang buhay na po ang inyong nasalba dito sa mga pondong ito,' said Go.
(For the longest time, I've been saying that if PhilHealth used their funds for their patients before, they could've had no more excess funds to return to the National Treasury. If they only used those funds to expand benefit packages and increase case rates, they could have saved so many more patients or lives with these funds.)
'Marami pong mga kababayan natin takot magpa-hospital, takot magpa-check-up dahil sa kahirapan. Yung iba po hindi nila alam na member sila ng PhilHealth… Kung alam lang nila na tutulungan sila ng PhilHealth sa pagpapa-hospital, hindi po sana nangyari yan. So, wala pong dahilan na ibalik niyo ang inyong pondo sa National Treasury habang naghihirap pa yung mga kababayan natin. Gamitin niyo po to expand your benefit packages. Ang dami pong sakit,' he urged.
(So many of our countrymen are scared to be hospitalized, scared to get check-ups because of poverty. Others don't even know that they are members of PhilHealth… If only they knew that PhilHealth can help them when they get hospitalized, that wouldn't have happened. There should have been no reason to return those funds to the National Treasury while our countrymen are suffering. Use those to expand your benefit packages. There are so many diseases.)
The committee chair noted that there had been several instances of patients who have suffered through critical conditions or passed away without being able to receive the benefits that should have been offered by PhilHealth.
As a result, he expressed support for the reduction of Philhealth's contributions as they had too much excess funds that they weren't using for benefits.
'Kung taasan niyo ang benepisyo ninyo, dagdagan niyo ang benepisyo ng mga kababayan natin, hindi magmamakaawa yung mga pasyente. Hindi yan magihihirap magmamakaawa, hingi ng tulong sa mga politiko. Dapat PhilHealth na yan… Bakit magmamakaawa ang Pilipino? Pera ng Pilipino yan, pera natin yan, pera ninyo yan. Dapat mapakinabangan yan at wala pinipili,' he said.
(If you only raise your benefits and add more benefits to our countrymen, the patients wouldn't have to beg. They wouldn't have to suffer and ask for mercy, or ask help from politicians. That should have been under PhilHealth… Why would the Filipinos need to beg? That is the money of the Filipinos, our money, your money. That should be enjoyed without any discrimination.)
'Dapat pag-aralan ng PhilHealth kung paano kayo makasabay ang inyong benepisyo sa actual hospitalization costs. We also urge PhilHealth to look into other packages that must be developed and enhanced… Patay na yung pasyente, hindi pa niya napakinabangan, nalugi pa siya sa kanyang binayad. Kasi kung insurance ito, kaya nga tayo nagbabayad ng insurance para insured tayo, kampante tayo na mabalik sa atin at magagamit natin sa tuwing tayo ang nangangailangan,' he added.
(PhilHealth should look into how the benefits could help with actual hospitalization costs. We also urge PhilHealth to look into other packages that must be developed and enhanced… The patient is already dead, they couldn't reap the benefits, and experienced loss with the fees that they paid. If this is insurance, then isn't the reason why we pay is to be insured and assured that it will return and be used everytime we need help?)
Go's sentiments were echoed by Senator Raffy Tulfo, who claimed he had seen a public hospital with a cashier for services not covered by PhilHealth.
Tulfo questioned the coverages, noting that remaining expenses pushed Filipinos to depend on ayudas and politicians for help on issues that should have been covered by the agency.
'Bakit kailangan mamigay ang politiko ng ayuda na galing sa gobyerno para pampagamot ng mga mahihirap na kababayan when in fact kaya naman gawin ng gobyerno yan? Bakit kinakailang idaan pa sa politiko?… It happens all the time,' Tulfo said.
(Why do politicians need to distribute ayuda from the government to cure the poor Filipinos, when in fact the government themselves could do that? Why do we need to go through politicians?... It happens all the time.)
The P89.9 billion excess PhilHealth funds have been consistently questioned by the government since 2024, expressing concern over the unused and idle funds amid repeated increased budget requests and increased contribution requirements.
The Department of Budget and Management (DBM), in 2024, said that the excess funds would be used to increase salaries and benefits of government workers as per the list of priority programs under unplanned appropriations.
In 2025, Finance Secretary Ralph Recto stated that they used P60 billion of said excess funds for the following health-related projects:
P27.45 billion to pay the allowances of COVID-19 frontliners
P10 billion to the Social Programs for Health to provide medical assistance to poor Filipinos
P3.37 billion for the establishment of three DOH facilities
P4.1 billion to strengthen existing DOH facilities
P1.6 billion to the Health Facilities Enhancement Program
P13.00 billion to fund the government counterpart financing for foreign-assisted infrastructure and social determinants for health projects.
— BM, GMA Integrated News