Pargas: Palace approved PhilHealth top execs’ triple pay during pandemic

PhilHealth signage. INQUIRER file photo

MANILA, Philippines — Top Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (Philhealth) executives tripled their salaries following an executive order (EO) issued by Malacañang in 2021.

PhilHealth spokesperson Israel Francis Pargas revealed the pay increases during Wednesday’s House Committee on Appropriations hearing for the budget of the Department of Health.

Pargas made the disclosure in response to Anakalusugan Representative Ray Reyes asking the agency about the Commission on Audit’s (COA) report stating the salary increase.

According to COA’s annual report released last month, PhilHealth’s key management personnel received P71.45 million in 2022, around triple compared to just P26.2 million in 2021.

“What is the basis of the increase of your salary? You tripled it, eh,” Reyes questioned Philhealth officials.

Pargas answered on behalf of the officials of the government-owned and controlled corporation (GOCC).

“Our salary was increased based on an executive order,” Pargas said.

He was referring to EO Number 150 Series of 2021, issued during the administration of former president Rodrigo Duterte.

The EO approved the Compensation and Position Classification System framework developed by the Governance Commission for GOCCs or GCG.

Pargas said PhilHealth applied to the GCG, which approved the certification process, tripling the officials’ salaries.

“We were granted the salary increase as certified by the GCG coming from the EO,” he said.

Reyes was surprised upon learning that Philhealth had applied for the tripling of salaries during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“You guys had the guts to actually, during the middle of a pandemic, triple your salaries?” the lawmaker was perplexed.

Pargas tried to justify the request by citing that the EO that allowed the pay hike came from Palace, not PhilHealth.

“I would like to check that the EO is not coming from PhilHealth but was coming from Malacañang as part of standardizing the salaries of all GOCCs,” he said.

“So it’s not only for PhilHealth but for all GOCCs which underwent the same process,” he added.

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