Probe into PhilHealth’s unpaid reimbursements pushed

Cagayan de Oro 2nd District Rep. Rufus Rodriguez FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez has called on his colleagues to investigate the state insurer Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) for its alleged failure to pay hospitals for P59.6 billion in reimbursements.

On Thursday, Rodriguez filed Resolution No. 2173, which calls on the House of Representatives to launch an inquiry into the unpaid claims.

This, on top of the House’s ongoing briefings with the state insurer about how to improve its services after Congress decided to defund its subsidy for 2025, which President Marcos upheld when he signed the 2025 General Appropriations Act.

A recent hearing of the House committee on health revealed that the state insurer failed to reimburse several hospitals over some seven years, with the claims being denied or returned to hospitals for correction.

The senior lawmaker said it was “imperative that the House of Representatives investigate this nonpayment of P59.6 billion worth of claims, and also look into ways to help hospitals comply with the law in order for them to be paid by PhilHealth,” he said.

“These nonpayments of claims have resulted in the partial closure of some medical services of hospitals, and in some cases the full closure of hospitals,” Rodriguez said in his resolution.