PhilHealth to get P71-B in proposed 2021 budget, says Sotto

IINQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) will receive P71 billion funds in the proposed 2021 budget, Senate President Vicente Sotto III said Saturday.

In a radio interview, Sotto disclosed that he will observe the activities in PhilHealth, the state insurer agency that was faced with irregularities in its funds.

“Tingnan muna natin, bigyan ninyo hanggang December, sabi ko, baka kako tumino. Makita kung ano ‘yung mga masasama, yung mga masamang gawain, baka naman tumino, eh di ayos, sabi ko. Pero kung hindi, then saka natin pagusapan yung privatization,” Sotto said over DWIZ in response to worries that the agency might get abolished.

(Let’s see, come December, I said, maybe they will improve. Maybe they can see the illegal acts and then they would improve. But if not, then let’s talk about PhilHealth’s privatization.)

The Senate leader then assured the public that he was informed by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) that the government allotted P71 billion funds for the agency.

“Pero don’t worry, sa mga kababayan natin, wag tayong mag-alala dito sa 2021 budget, pinaguusapan namin at ako ay kinausap na rin ni Sec. Wendell Avisado, DBM natin, mayroon tayong allotment na P71 billion para sa PhilHealth…. At saka maraming pang natitira ang PhilHealth. Mayroong pondo, talagang masama lang ang paggamit,” Sotto said.

(But don’t worry, to the public, because the 2021 budget, which I was already informed by DBM, has a P71 billion allotment for PhilHealth. And there are still funds here at PhilHealth. We have funds, it’s just that it was not used properly.)

Under DBM’s documents, P4.506 trillion national budget was proposed for 2021 which is 9.9 percent higher than this year’s budget.

Currently, the Senate and House of Representatives are undertaking deliberations on the proposed P4.506 trillion budget.

CFC