SC asked to stop transfer of P59.9-B PhilHealth excess fund to treasury 

The PhilHealth Local Health Insurance Office Caloocan (https://www.philhealth.gov.ph/)

MANILA, Philippines — Bayan Muna party-list on Wednesday filed a motion before the Supreme Court seeking to immediately stop the transfer of P59.9-billion PhilHealth excess funds to the national treasury and to return the remitted funds to the agency.

The motion was filed by Bayan Muna chair Neri Colmenares and former Bayan Muna Representatives Carlos Isagani Zarate, Ferdinand Gaite, and Teddy Casiño.

In their motion, the petitioners stressed the urgency of the matter, noting that with the oral arguments for the consolidated petitions involving the transfer of PhilHealth’s excess funds set in January 2025, the full transfer may have already been completed. This would render the issue moot unless immediate action is taken, they added.

The petitioners also argued that allowing the fund transfer to continue “renders the injury grave and irreparable” to the public.

“Wherefore, premises considered, respectfully pray of the Honorable Court [that] a temporary restraining order be immediately issued restraining Respondents, and all persons acting under their authority, from transferring the remaining balance of P59.9 billion of PhilHealth Fund Balance scheduled for transfer to the Unprogrammed Appropriations,” the motion read.

“In the alternative, Petitioners pray that a status quo ante order be immediately issued retraining Respondents and all persons acting under their authority, from enforcing the said transfer and for the return of the P30 billion already transferred on May 10 and August 21, 2024, respectively,” it added.

Bayan Muna filed the motion on top of the petition they filed in September challenging the 2024 General Appropriations Act, specifically the inclusion of Section 1(d), Chapter XLIII, which allowed the transfer of PhilHealth’s excess funds.

READ: SC asked to order return of PhilHealth funds transferred to treasury

So far, under the Department of Finance’s Circular 003-2024, P20 billion was transferred to the national treasury on May 10, followed by P10 billion on Aug. 21.

The third tranche, at P30 billion, is set to be transferred this October, while the remaining funds will be transferred in November.