Angara seeks Senate probe into PhilHealth scams

MANILA, Philippines — Senator Sonny Angara has called for an investigation into the alleged scams involving the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth).

The senator has filed Senate Resolution No. 3 urging the appropriate Senate committee to conduct an inquiry, in aid of legislation, on recent allegations of fraudulent medical claims with the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth).

He reasoned that “funds that are intended for the poor and for those who are in actual need of medical assistance should be protected.”

“We want to get to the bottom of all these reported scams, identify the personalities behind them, and come up with policies to prevent similar cases from taking place in the future,” Angara said in a statement.

It was recently reported that PhilHealth has lost a total of P154 billion since 2013 due to scams, including the ‘ghost’ dialysis treatments.

READ: PhilHealth pays for ghost kidney treatments

Angara said he wants to ensure that before the Universal Health Care (UHC) Act is implemented in full, funds are being spent properly.

“Before the full implementation of the UHC, there is also a need to review the utilization of PhilHealth’s funds in order to assure the public that the corporation is using the premiums of its members and the budget allocated to them by the government efficiently,” the resolution read.

The senator also noted that Congress recently approved the bill that will raise the excise tax on tobacco products in order to fund the budget gaps for the full implementation of the UHC, which needs a total of P257 billion for the first year of implementation.  (Editor: Mike U. Frialde)

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