By Perfecto T. Raymundo, Jr.
QUEZON CITY — Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) composed of medical and labor leaders on Tuesday (Dec. 17) condemned the zero appropriation for the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) in the 2025 General Appropriations Act (GAA).
In a press conference dubbed “Itigil ang Pambababoy sa Pera ng Bayan”, Prof. Cielo Magno, former Finance Undersecretary and Co-Convenor of Wag Kang KuCorrupt, 2023 allocation for PhilHealth began to decrease such that of the P83.9 billion but Congress only allocated P79 billion n P69.81 billion proposed for 2025 and the BiCam only allocated zero budget.
The Medical Assistance for Indigent program is for patronage politics such that the interests of the politicians are prioritized than that of the public
O for PhilHealth, – P10 B from DepEd, – P50 B from 4Ps
The interest of the public should be prioritized more than the interest of politicians.
Magno noted that only Senators Koko Pimentel and Raisa Hontiveros voted against the 2025 GAA.
“This budget is pro-politicians and anti-Filipino,” she said, adding that “education and health are not being prioritized.”Magno said that 40% of the Sin Tax or P70 billion should be the subsidy to PhilHealth, with an original proposal of P170 billion such that from P6,000 premium, it was cut down to P5,000.
“The specific laws cannot be amended by the GAA,” she said.
“The Universal Healthcare Law is a socialized program where the government is mandated to subsidize the contribution of the poor,” she added.
Atty. Sonny Matula, Chairperson of Nagkaisa Labor Coalition, noted that the contribution of employees to PhilHealth was increased by 1% while zero budget was allocated to PhilHealth for 2025.
President Ferdinand R Marcos, Jr. should follow the words of former President Ramon Magsaysay that those who have less in life must have more in law.
“We condemn the adoption of the National Expenditures Program for 2025 that allocated zero budget for the PhilHealth and an additional P18-billion budget for Congress,” Matula said.
“We also support the filing of a case before the SC against the 2025 GAA,” he added.
Matula noted that the DPWH has P1.1 trillion budget for 2025 while the DepEd only has P800-billion budget.
He added that majority of the administrative expenses of PhilHealth are shouldered by the direct contributors of PhilHealth.
” The General Law cannot amend a specific law,” Matula said.
Matula stressed that they will use as an argument a precedent SC ruling which says that when there are two opposing laws, the law that is more beneficial and advantageous to the people will prevail, if and the 2025 GAA is signed into law before Christmas Day.
Dr. Juan Antonio Perez III, former Undersecretary for Population and Development of the Commission on Population, and Universal Healthcare Collective, said that PhilHealth spent P122 billion in 2023.
P193.58 billion for Konsullta package, Maternal package for P4.12 billion, Newborn package with P1.61 billion for about 1.4 million babies, Hemodialysis procedure at P13.68 billion such that P1 million for each Dialysis
TB package with P4 billion, among others,
or a total of P348 billion.
More than P100 billion was spent last year.
Where did the money of PhilHealth or Sin Tax go?
Universal Healthcare advocates are calling for the restoration of the 25,348,952 indirect contributors.
Basic services should be prioritized.
Roll out the primary Healthcare or Konsulta.
Perez said “once the 2025 GAA is signed into law, we will ask the Supreme Court to issue a temporary restraining order and bring back to the Senate the proposed 2025 GAA.”
The zero budget for PhilHealth was released during the Universal Healthcare Law Day.
More than 100 organizations and individuals, including the Philippine Medical Association, and other organizations have signed a statement condemning the act of the Bicameral Conference Committee that adopted a zero budget for PhilHealth in the 2025 GAA.
Dr. Hector Santos, President of 64,000-strong PMA, said that the doctors are against the zero budget for PhilHealth for 2025 in the sense that the doctors are the ones implementing the Universal Healthcare Law.
45% are involved in government service and 55% are in private sector.
Dr. Santos added that the doctors believe they will provide medical and health services as PhilHealth is the health insurer.
The doctors are accepting the Guarantee Letters (GL) through the MAI or AKAP, but the claims are denied by PhilHealth.
The doctors are willing to provide health service hoping that PhilHealth will settle the claims, but if there will be a zero budget for 2025, the benefits for PhilHealth members will be even more lessened.
“We are the ones implementing these health services for PhilHealth,” Dr. Santos said.
“We are really supporting the program of Kalusugan para sa Lahat,” he added.
