Senate President Francis Escudero —Niño Jesus Orbeta
MANILA, Philippines — Senate President Francis Escudero on Sunday said his chamber, which begins its plenary deliberations on the proposed national budget for 2025 this week, is not inclined to grant the additional subsidy requested by the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth).
“That’s possible, but I assure you there will be no additional subsidy for any PhilHealth program given the huge amount of money that they have,” Escudero said in an interview with radio dzBB when asked about the possibility of not granting the state insurer’s request.
For 2025, the state insurer is seeking an additional P70 billion in government subsidy.
READ: SC issues TRO vs transfer of PhilHealth funds to National Treasury
“We should maximize the fiscal space that we have for the coming year. Governance is about allocating scarce resources. If you are able to allocate scarce resources properly, then we govern properly as well,” Escudero pointed out.
Several lawmakers have vowed to scrutinize the subsidy sought by PhilHealth to ensure that it would truthfully use its funds to support the needs of Filipinos.
READ: PhilHealth’s fault
This came after the Department of Finance (DOF) earlier issued Circular 003-2024, which ordered the transfer of PhilHealth’s unused subsidy totaling P89.9 billion to the Bureau of the Treasury to finance other government expenditures.
However, the move prompted opposition lawmakers and civil society organizations to petition the Supreme Court to stop the transfer, arguing that PhilHealth funds should be used only for the benefit of its members.
Last week, the high court issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) preventing the transfer of P59.9 billion, of which P30 billion had already been remitted as of Oct. 16.
A total of P60 billion had already been transferred to the Bureau of the Treasury. With the TRO in place, the transfer of the P59.9 billion, including the already remitted P30 billion and the final tranche of P29.9 billion, should not proceed.
“The question really is, why does PhilHealth have so much excess funds when we see that a lot of our citizens do not actually obtain any benefits from PhilHealth?” Escudero asked.
“That is one of the things PhilHealth should clarify and answer in the upcoming deliberations because if we are going to add to the budget of PhilHealth, but if they’re not going to use it, then we lose, especially due to inflation,” he noted.
The Senate President has been pointing out to PhilHealth that it was losing about P20 billion a year in terms of value by not utilizing its P500-billion reserve fund.
He said the state insurer could afford to slash the mandatory contribution paid by its members due to the huge amount of unused funds that it had accumulated over the years.
“For me, it’s better if they use it to help our fellow Filipinos through additional medical services or to lower the premium they pay,” Escudero said.
Annual subsidies
Citing figures from the DOF showing that the reserve fund of PhilHealth has reached close to P500 billion plus the substantial government subsidy to the state health insurance firm every year, Escudero said there were more than enough resources to cover a reduction in members’ premium contributions.
The national government provides an annual subsidy to PhilHealth for the implementation of the National Health Insurance Program, primarily to cover for the premiums of indirect contributors such as indigents and senior citizens, he noted.
He said the subsidy to PhilHealth amounted to P71.3 billion in 2021, P80 billion in 2022, P79 billion in 2023, and P40.3 billion this year.
Escudero pointed out that the huge subsidies allocated annually to PhilHealth, coupled with its continually increasing reserve fund, provided the state health insurer ample room to reduce the premium rate of its members.
“Assuming the average subsidy to PhilHealth is at P70 billion, the government would still be able to reallocate a significant amount of funding for other purposes for seven years if these subsidies were to be sourced from the firm’s reserve fund,” he said in an earlier statement.
House priority
Meanwhile, the House of Representatives is looking to ratify the 2025 general appropriations bill (GAB) before Congress goes into its Christmas break.
House Majority Leader Manuel Jose Dalipe on Sunday assured the public that the ratification of the proposed P6.352-trillion national budget for 2025 would remain at the top of the chamber’s agenda when it reconvenes on Monday.
Dalipe said the House was expecting the Senate to pass the budget proposal soon so that the two chambers could task a bicameral conference committee to come up with a common version of the outlay for next year.
“We hope to ratify the bicam report before our Dec. 20 Christmas break. There is enough time to approve the final version of the budget,” said the Zamboanga City lawmaker, adding that the 2025 GAB would be ready to be signed into law by President Marcos before the end of 2024.
“As in the past, the spending program for the coming year will be in place before the current fiscal year is over to ensure continuity of spending and the seamless implementation of activities and programs,” Dalipe said.
Oversight powers
The majority leader also vowed that the House would continue its oversight power through its different panels, including the quad committee, the committee on good government and public accountability, and the newly created quinta committee, or quinta comm, on smuggling and price manipulation of basic goods.
The quinta committee, created in September, is made up of the House panels on ways and means, trade and industry, agriculture and food, social services, and the special committee on food security.
Headed by ways and means panel chair Albay Rep. Joey Salceda, the quinta committee’s mandate is to look into smuggling and basic goods cost manipulation to protect the public from unreasonable price increases.
“We remain steadfast in protecting our people from abuses and in exposing acts of wrongdoing in the government,” he said.
Dalipe said the House would also work to pass the remaining Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council priority measures, including amendments to Republic Act No. 6657 (Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law) and RA 7652 (Investors’ Lease Act) that seeks to allow the long-term lease by foreigners of private lands. —with a report from Jeannette I. Andrade