DOJ readying to end probe of PhilHealth

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Justice (DOJ)-led interagency task force investigating the alleged corruption and other anomalies at Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) will end its hearings next week so it can craft its report to President Rodrigo Duterte by Sept. 14.

“We’ll wind up our hearings next week, [and] thereafter, analyze and consolidate all the information and evidence that we have gathered, and proceed to prepare our report with recommendations to the President,” Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra, chair of Task Force PhilHealth, told reporters in an exchange on Viber on Friday.

Guevarra said participating agencies such as the National Bureau of Investigation, Presidential Anti-Crime Commission, Anti-Money Laundering Council and Commission on Audit “will try to conclude” some of their ongoing investigations or special audits on PhilHealth.

On the other hand, the Office of the Ombudsman and the Civil Service Commission “will exert efforts to resolve” PhilHealth-related cases already pending with their offices.

“Our deadline for the submission of the report is on Sep. 14, but our composite teams will continue with their investigation of the more complicated PhilHealth cases of graft or fraud and file the appropriate legal action even beyond that termination date,” Guevarra added.

The investigations are not expected to affect PhilHealth’s P71-billion allocation in the 2021 budget because of the COVID-19 situation, said Senate President Vicente Sotto III.