1Sambayan, others file petition to block transfer of excess PhilHealth funds

1SAMBAYAN Coalition, members of UP Law Class 1975, and other individuals on Wednesday filed a petition with the Supreme Court seeking to prevent the transfer of P89.9-billion excess funds of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) back to the national treasury.

1SAMBAYAN Coalition and members of UP Law Class 1975, among others, file a petition for certiorari and prohibition before the Supreme Court, questioning the constitutionality of PhilHealth’s transfer of excess funds to the national treasury. @gmanews pic.twitter.com/Q8OfR3kl44

— Giselle Ombay (@giselleombay_) October 16, 2024

In a 46-page petition for certiorari and prohibition, the petitioners asked the high court to issue a temporary restraining order (TRO), writ of preliminary injunction and/or other injunctive remedies under Article VIII, Sections 1, 4(2), 5(1) of the 1987 Constitution, and Rule 65 of the Rules of Court, as amended.

The petitioners are also appealing to the SC to declare null and void Section 1 (d) of XLIII of the General Appropriations Act 2024, as well as the Department of Finance’s Circular 003-2024 for being “repugnant” to the 1987 Philippine Constitution.

Likewise, they are seeking for an issuance of a Writ of Prohibition restraining respondents or any person, entity, member, officer, employee, representative or agent acting singly or collectively with them from enforcing the above-mentioned.

This is in line with the diversion of P89.9-billion excess funds of PhilHealth back to state coffers.

So far, PhilHealth has remitted to the Treasury the first tranche of P20 billion in May and another P10 billion in August.

The state insurer is scheduled to remit the third tranche of diversion amounting to P30 billion this October, while the remaining P29.9 billion is slated to be transferred in November.

In a message to GMA News Online, Finance Secretary Ralph Recto confirmed that the third tranche worth P30 billion will be transferred back to the national treasury within the day.

“I respect their right to petition the Supreme Court. We will respect whatever the decision of the Supreme Court may be,” Recto said.

‘Irreparable’

Retired Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio, one of the petitioners, explained at a press conference that they are asking the Supreme Court to issue a TRO as the transfer of the P89.9-billion PhilHealth funds is “irreparable.”

“That is irreparable because kapag nagasto na ‘yan [if that is already utilized], there’s nobody in the government that can reimburse that [because] the rule is, if it is an illegal disbursement, we have to return the money. But how can anyone return P89.9 billion? Hindi kaya ni Secretary Recto ‘yan [Sec. Recto can’t do that],” Carpio said.

In the petition, it was stressed that once the whole P89.9 billion is disbursed, there is already irreparable damage as Recto “cannot return the money because the amount is so huge.”

“His assets will not be sufficient to pay for the damage. The loss of the P89.9 billion will be irreparable even if it is quantifiable,” the petition read.

The SC has set oral arguments in mid-January 2025 regarding the petitions seeking to block the diversion of the excess funds of the PhilHealth back to state coffers.

With this, former Finance Undersecretary Cielo Magno said that if the SC favors them and will issue a decision after all of the excess funds were already transferred to the national treasury, it can still prevent similar instances from happening again.

“Ang value po siguro kung magkakaroon ng decision sa January ay ang pagdeklara na unconstitutional itong ginagawa ng Department of Finance at ang Kongreso natin sa pagkuha ng pondo ng PhilHealth,” she explained.

(If there’s a decision in January, the value of which is the declaration that what the Department of Finance and the Congress is doing by taking the PhilHealth funds is unconstitutional.)

Bayan Muna

Another group that marched to the Supreme Court on Wednesday was Bayan Muna to file a motion for the issuance of a TRO and ask the high court to stop the transfer of PhilHealth’s remaining P59.9 billion in excess funds to state coffers.

Bayan Muna also file a motion for the issuance of a temporary restraining order, asking the Supreme Court to stop the transfer of PhilHealth’s remaining P59.9 billion in excess funds to state coffers. @gmanews pic.twitter.com/J7TNAlqhcd

— Giselle Ombay (@giselleombay_) October 16, 2024

“Ang isang gusto naming tutulan dito ay ‘yung P60 billion na pondo ng PhilHealth, baka magamit sa eleksyon. Kasi ‘pag natuloy ang transfer ng pondo na ‘yan sa unprogrammed funds, nasa loob ng unprogrammed funds ang mga lump sum allocations na hindi natin alam kung saan nagagamit at usually dito nakalagay ang pork barrel projects ng mga politiko,” former Bayan Muna Rep. Teddy Casiño said.

(One thing that we want to avoid here is that the P60 billion PhilHealth fund might be used in the election. Because when that fund is transferred to the unprogrammed funds, the lump sum allocations will be under the unprogrammed funds which we don’t know how is being utilized, and that’s where the pork barrel projects of the politicians are usually placed.)

“So dapat protektahan ng Korte Suprema ang pondo ng PhilHealth—that’sP60B—na ‘wag itong mapunta sa bulsa ng mga politiko lalo na’t may nalalapit na eleksyon sa 2025,” he added.

(The Supreme Court should protect the PhilHealth fund worth P60B so that it won’t end up in the pockets of politicians, especially since there’s an upcoming election in 2025.)

Last month, the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) asked the SC to dismiss the petition seeking to prevent the transfer of unused P89.9-billion funds.

Health Secretary Ted Herbosa, for his part, had said that the PhilHealth excess funds will be rechanneled to fund programs for the medical community. — RSJ, GMA Integrated News