THE Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) on June 1 announced it would stop issuing any further statement to the media regarding recent issues related to the premium contributions of senior citizens.
“Based on the directive of the PhilHealth Board of Directors, we have already filed a complaint against former Health Secretary Dr. Janette L. Garin and former PhilHealth President and CEO Alexander A. Padilla with the Office of the Ombudsman pertaining to the process by which the request for the funds was made,” PhilHealth President Celestina Ma. Jude de la Serna said in a statement.
De la Serna vowed to cooperate in the proceedings and concentrate on the next steps that they will take.
“Let me sincerely assure our members and stakeholders that we remain unwavering in our efforts to uphold the ideals of genuine public service, and that we conduct our operations with utmost public accountability to ensure that service remains uninterrupted,” she said.
The PhilHealth Board decided to file a case of graft against Garin and Padilla before the Office of the Ombudsman in March. The two allegedly asked for the release of the fund for the Health Facilities Enhancement Program (HFEP) and purchase of barangay health stations and dental buses of the Department of Health (DOH).
De la Serna bared the filing of the case during a congressional hearing on the sustainability of PhilHealth’s fund on Tuesday.
Garin and Padilla both belied the claim they had diverted P10.6 billion worth of senior citizens’ fund, noting the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) did not approve its release.
Earlier, Garin on Wednesday refuted the accusation that she and Padilla diverted the P10.6 billion originally meant for the payment of senior citizens’ insurance premiums to establish rural health units of the DOH nationwide.
“No such diversion. While there were collectibles submitted by the finance department of PhilHealth, these were not justified. As there are conditions required prior to release of said fund, and this was not met,” Garin told the Philippine News Agency in a text message.
She noted that the DBM turned down the release of the amount for the HFEP and Human Resource Program among others.
Garin was reacting to statements made by d la Serna during the Senate probe into her travel expenses and the issue on the sustainability of the agency’s funds.
During the hearing, dela Serna gave copies to the media of the graft complaint against Garin and Padilla filed before the Office of the Ombudsman.
In the complaint, de la Serna alleged the P10.6 billion originally meant for the payment of senior citizens’ insurance premiums was diverted by Garin and Padilla in favor of the establishment of DOH’s rural health units.
Based on the complaint, on April 28, 2015, Padilla sent a letter to Garin to ask the DBM to process the Special Allotment Release Order and release the funds as payment for the senior citizens, as mandated by Republic Act 10645, or the Expanded Senior Citizens Act and the National Health Insurance Program.
The complaint also said that nearly four months after, on August 5, 2015, the two former officials wrote a letter to then-Budget chief Florencio B. Abad and requested, without approval of the PhilHealth Board, for the immediate release of the P10.6 billion for the DOH’s HFEP instead.
Garin decried being used as a scapegoat by the PhilHealth chief to “cover up” the financial mess the state-run health insurer is in.
“Culprits of fraud and financial mismanagement in PhilHealth should not use me as a scapegoat to cover up their current disastrous financial situation,” she said in the text message.
She also called on the government to lead a credible audit of the financial condition of PhilHealth.
“PhilHealth has been mismanaged. I call on our government to direct an external, credible audit team and salvage [the] institution before it becomes too late,” she added.