MANILA, Philippines – IGAGALANG at susundin ng Department of Finance (DOF) ang kautusan ng Korte Suprema na ipagpaliban ang paglilipat ng natitirang ‘excess’ government subsidies ng Philippines Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) sa Bureau of the Treasury (BTr).
Sa isang kalatas, sinabi ni Finance Secretary Ralph Recto na ginagalang ng DOF ang “Supreme Court’s intervention.”
“As a public servant myself, I recognize the right of every citizen to seek redress from the courts. Rest assured that the DOF will fully comply with the order of the Supreme Court,” ang sinabi ni Recto.
Nauna rito, nagpalabas ang Korte Suuprema ng Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) hinggil sa paglilipat ng balance ng PhilHealth na ‘P89.9-billion excess at unused funds’ pabalik sa Treasury.
Sa ngayon, ang nailipat pa lamang kasi ng PhilHealth sa BTr ay P60 billion, mayroong P29.9 billion naman ang natitira sa ahensiya.
At sa tanong kung ang TRO ay nangangahulugan na ang dating nailipat na pondo ay ibabalik sa PhilHealth, sinabi ni SC spokesperson Atty. Camille Ting na “this was not the subject of the high court’s order.”
“We give our full cooperation to the Supreme Court as we look forward to the opportunity to shed light on the issues presented during the oral arguments. With this honorable platform, we trust that all issues will be addressed once and for all,” ang sinabi ni Recto.
Inulit naman ng Kalihim na ang hakbang ng DOF na ‘to sweep the idle, unused, and excess funds of government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCCs)’ ay mandato sa ilalim ng Republic Act 11975 o GAA 2024, na inaprubahan ng Kongreso.
“We reiterate that before proceeding with the utilization of GOCC idle funds, our agency exercised due diligence and consulted extensively with the government’s legal experts.
These include the Governance Commission for GOCCs, the Government Corporate Counsel, and the Commission on Audit. These efforts were undertaken to ensure full compliance with our laws,” ang litaniya ni Recto.
Tinuran pa ng DOF, na “received favorable legal opinions on the matter that PhilHealth’s unutilized government subsidies are not part of its reserve funds, nor income that is being restricted by the Universal Health Care Act to be used by the national government as a general fund.”
Ang mga programa at proyekto na pinondohan ng unused government subsidies sa PhilHealth ay kinabibilangan ng unpaid allowances ng mga health worker sa panahon ng pandemiya; Salary Standardization VI para sa mga government employees na ipinalabas ngayong taon; revised Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Modernization Program; Philippine Multisectoral Nutrition Project; Philippine Rural Development Project; Mindanao Inclusive Agriculture Development Project; at iba’t ibang big-ticket infrastructure projects sa ilalim ng Build Better More program.
Para naman sa PhilHealth, sinabi nito na ginagalang nila at ganap na susundin ang desisyon ng Korte Suprema.
“We remain focused on our mission to provide all Filipinos with adequate financial protection against health risks through better and responsive benefit packages and availment policies that ensure greater access to healthcare services whenever and wherever they need them most,” ang sinabi ni PhilHealth President Emmanuel Ledesma Jr.
Samantala, sinabi naman ni Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra na ang Office of the Solicitor General (OSG), kumkatawan sa mga opisyal ng pamahalaan bilang respondents sa pleadings, ay igagalang din ang TRO. Kris Jose
