PhilHealth chief: Cut in premiums still under study

MANILA, Philippines — After saying last month that he would “immediately” recommend to President Marcos that the monthly premium contribution of its members be reduced by three percent, Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) chief Emmanuel Rufino Ledesma seems to have backpedaled on that promise, saying instead that they are still studying the proposal.

During the hearing of the Senate committee on health and demography on the transfer of PhilHealth’s excess fund to the Bureau of the Treasury, its chairman, Sen. Bong Go, asked Ledesma about his recommendation to the President.

Go anchored his inquiry on Ledesma’s statement at the previous hearing, that he would recommend to the President the reduction of the monthly premium contribution of its members, as PhilHealth agreed to transfer P89.9 billion of its unused funds to the national treasury.

Apparently not satisfied with the PhilHealth chief’s answer, Go pressed, “Are you really not answering my question earlier? When you said that you would recommend the decrease of the premium contribution to our dear President Marcos, have you done it yet? You promised at the last hearing that you would recommend it. Did you avoid my question?”

Ledesma then revealed that they are still studying the proposal and have not yet recommended the reduction of PhilHealth premium contributions to the President.

“This is how I recall in the last hearing – I mentioned we will thoroughly study the possibility of recommending whether the premium contributions will be brought down… decrease in premium contributions,” said Ledesma.

“We are still in the process of reviewing and studying. So, we have nothing to recommend to President Marcos yet. Because PhilHealth is still studying it,” he added.

But Go pointed out that the PhilHealth chief previously promised to recommend the reduction.

“In fact, what you said was… ‘we at PhilHealth – our management – will recommend to President Marcos that we bring down the premium rates.’ That’s on the record. That clear. Do you want to review the records?” he said.

Ledesma said he is supportive of the reduction of premium contribution, as part of the proposal to amend the Universal Health Care