PhilHealth scam true, say readers

BINAY: My wealth acquired legally; I’ve other businesses—headline.

READ: Binay: My wealth acquired legally; I’ve other businesses

What kind of businesses, Mr. Vice President?

Monkey business?

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“My accounts include income and savings before I joined the government. We also have businesses that are already decades old,” said Vice President Jojo Binay.

Binay made the above statement to deny the claim by the Anti-Money Laundering Council that his only source of funds came from his salary as Makati mayor and now as the country’s vice president.

Binay’s means of livelihood before he became mayor of the premier town was defending in court anti-Marcos critics and suspected communist rebels who were poor like himself during the martial law years.

As a police reporter in those years, I saw Binay joining rallies against the Marcos regime; he looked anything but rich.

Binay should back up his claim that his family has “businesses that are already decades old” because, as far as many people know, his family’s only legitimate business is a flower shop.

The cake shop owned by his children came later but it’s not earning that much.

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I’ve received several reactions from readers since I featured what seems to be a scam at PhilHealth as reported by a nurse who has “witnessed first hand” how some doctors and PhilHealth personnel bilk the government of millions of

pesos.

READ: Philhealth scam?

Doctors and hospitals, in cahoots with PhilHealth staff, allegedly treat persons covered by the national health insurance program even if they’re not sick and then bill the government thousands of pesos, according to the nurse.

Most of the reactions back up the nurse’s allegation.

“I’m a doctor in Pagadian City, Zamboanga del Sur. I’m a private practitioner and what the nurse e-mailed and mentioned in your column is what is happening in my locality,” said the reader.

Another reader said, “I and my family are patients sometimes. I get the same feeling that some hospitals in Negros Oriental and Leyte jack up costs of hospitalization and charge them to PhilHealth.”

A reader from Siocon, Zamboanga del Norte, wrote: “Our past mayor (blank, blank) has been doing this scam by admitting patients who are dependents of [government welfare program], have them stay in hospital for 2-3 days and then charge PhilHealth.”

“I truly believe in the connivance between hospitals and PhilHealth Ormoc personnel. This is so obvious but why can’t they see it?” said still another reader.