Gwyneth Perseveranda

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. assured Filipinos that the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) will maintain its benefits and services in 2025, even after receiving no government subsidy for the year.

Photo Courtesy of Inquirer.net/ABS-CBN.

In an interview on December 20, Marcos guaranteed that PhilHealth's financial assistance and other programs would remain unaffected despite the budget cut.

“Napaka-simple lang ng guarantee ko: kahit walang subsidy, kahit anong contribution, hindi mababawasan ang serbisyo ng PhilHealth. Hindi mababawasan ang bayad ng PhilHealth sa insurance claim,” he said.

The President emphasized that instead of scaling back, PhilHealth aims to expand its programs to reach more Filipinos.

“Hindi mababawasan ang bayad ng PhilHealth sa insurance claim. In fact, baligtad,” Marcos continued. 

“Pararamihin pa namin ang serbisyong ibibigay ng PhilHealth. Palalakihin pa namin ang pagbayad sa insurance claims,” he added.

Marcos defended the removal of the subsidy, explaining that PhilHealth has sufficient funds to sustain its operations.

On December 11, the bicameral conference committee finalized its decision to cut PhilHealth's ₱74.431 billion subsidy for 2025 to zero. 

Senator Grace Poe explained that lawmakers arrived at this decision due to the state insurer’s ₱600 billion reserve fund, which they deemed adequate to support its programs.

"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.

According to Poe, the funds originally allocated for PhilHealth were redirected to other sectors which urgently need funding

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