By Perfecto T. Raymundo, Jr.
QUEZON CITY — The medical community and health advocates on Friday night (Jan. 10) termed as “most corrupt” the P6.326-Trillion General Appropriations Act of 2025 signed into law by President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. on Dec. 30, 2024.
They also called for the restoration of more than 25 million contributors to PhilHealth.
During the open discussion and exchange of ideas, Kenneth Abante, coordinator of the Citizens Budget Tracker, said that the 2025 Budget is the biggest national budget in the nation’s history.
Congress allegedly secretly inserted billions of pesos in “pork barrel” and in the process slashed P12 billion from the DepEd Budget and zero budget or subsidy to PhilHealth pegged at P74 billion.
It was noted that an increase of P289 billion was inserted into the DPWH Budget for 2025.
Politicians purportedly wanted the Filipinos to beg for mercy for their health needs such that the politicians would also like the Filipinos to beg to be included in the “ayuda” in the sense that P50 billion was slashed from the 4Ps and AKAP programs of the DSWD.
They allegedly bloated the unprogrammed appropriations to the tune of P289 billion, but President Marcos only vetoed P194 billion.
The 2025 GAA allegedly violated the 1987 Constitution such that the DPWH Budget is bigger than the DepEd Budget, there is no citizen’s participation in the amount of P10 billion in the DBCC.
The DSWD and the OP should open up the list of the beneficiaries of AKAP.
Open up the budget hearing in the DBCCs.
Abante stressed that the General Appropriations Act cannot amend any specific law such as the Sin Tax Law or the Universal Healthcare Law.
Dr. Juan Antonio Perez III, former PopCom Executive Director, said that there is an existing health crisis, which did not only originate in 2025, adding that of 1,448,522 pregnancies in 2023, only 768,384 were covered by PhilHealth.
Of around 488,522 newborn infants in 2023, only 590,588 were ccverered by PhilHealth.
In the 2023 claims payment, P122.38 billion, wherein PhilHealth should spend P348 billion, but it only spends P129B yearly, noting that P40B was not used in 2024 and another P69B, which were transferred to the MAIFIP.
Without the P74-billion subsidy to PhilHealth in 2025, it was seen that there will be less benefits that could be availed of under the Universal Healthcare Act of 2019.
It was noted that there is mixed progress in addressing health challenges in the Philippines.
It would appear that PhilHealth only spends P40 for every P100.
The Philipines has been underinvesting in primary care of about 4% only.
They called to restore the full premiums of 25,340,992 estimated indirect contributors in 2025 and ensure annual automatic appropriation.
Dr. Perez III, who has been in government from 1999 to 2022, believes in the statement of former Senate President Franklin Drilon that there is a P731-billion pork barrel for 2024 and the same amount for 2025.
Dr. Antonio Dans said that he is sure that there are families who have suffered due to inadequate and inefficient health package.
The out-of-pocket expenditure for health was at 70%, majority of which are poor patients.
In January 2024, 4% of P10,000 salary is deducted for PhilHealth under the National Health Insurance Program (NHIP) based on the principle of social solidarity.
Under the Sin Tax Law, 50% of taxes of sweet products and tobacco products goes to the Universal Healthcare Law (UHL), 80% of which or 40% goes to PhilHealth.
The amount explicitly specified by the UHL, cannot be withdrawn.
Because of the zero subsidy to PhilHealth in 2025 in the amount of P74 billion.
In 2012 the Sin Tax Law was passed in the Senate by a margin of one vote and the then Senator Bongbong Marcos was one of those who did not sign for the passage of the Sin Tax Law.
