PhilHealth gets zero subsidy in 2025 nat'l budget

The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) will get zero subsidy in 2025 due to its P600 billion reserve funds.

This was disclosed by Senate finance committee chairman Grace Poe after the closing of the bicameral conference committee meeting on House Bill No. 10800 or the General Appropriations Bill (GAB) which contains the P6.352 trillion national budget.

"Sa ngayon, ang PhilHealth ay hindi nabigyan ng budget. Sapagkat kailangan nilang gamitin muna yung kanilang reserve funds," Poe told reporters in an interview.

(Right now, PhilHealth was not given any budget for next year because they need to use first their reserve funds.)

"Ang PhilHealth ngayon, kung hindi ako nagkakamali, merong P600 billion na reserve funds. Naka-deposito lang yan sa... kung anong account nila nilalagay, but definitely kung anong kinikita niyan, mas maliit pa sa, mas mababa pa sa inflation. So, lugi pa yung gobyerno," Poe explained.

(They currently have P600 billion in reserve funds that are deposited in one of their accounts.)

According to Poe, the funds for PhilHealth were realigned to sectors which have no funding for 2025.

"Doon sa mga sektor na talagang walang pondo, doon natin nilagay yung mga sobra naman sa iba na alam natin hindi nila kailangan," she said.

(We reallocated the funds for Philhealth to the sectors which have zero funding.)

"'Yung allotment na ibibigay sa kanila ngayon ay nilagay natin doon sa mga departamento na mas nangangailangan," she added.

(The allotment that was supposed to be given to them were realigned to departments that need it the most.)

While there is no subsidy for PhilHealth, Poe said the cost for its operations is still included in the final version of the proposed national budget bill.

"Hindi naman sila zero kasi meron silang pang operating cost," she said.

(They still have their budget for their operating costs.)

Under the 2024 National Expenditure Program (NEP) proposed by the Executive Department, PhilHealth was allocated with P74.431 billion.

The Senate reduced it to P64.419 billion.

After the bicam, lawmakers from the Senate and the House decided to remove the subsidy for PhilHealth entirely.

To recall, PhilHealth has become controversial due to the transfer of its P89.9 billion excess funds to the national treasury.

Earlier, the bicameral conference committee approved the final version of the 2025 GAB. President Ferdinand ''Bongbong'' Marcos Jr. is likely to sign the P6.352 trillion national budget plan for next year by December 20, 2024, according to the Presidential Communications Office. 

—VAL, GMA Integrated News