Duterte wants to abolish PhilHealth

By Fernan Angeles

MASSIVE, organized corruption at the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation may have pushed President Rodrigo Duterte too hard that he is now seriously considering on its abolition.

“I’m going to propose to Congress to abolish [it],” Duterte said in a pre-recorded speech that aired Monday night.

Duterte also dismissed calls for its privatization — “The insurance capitalists will say: ‘So we’re going to pay? But you don’t have funds,’” Duterte said in the vernacular.

In the meantime, Duterte hinted on imposing a major revamp in the graft-ridden state insurer.

“But I will try to begin tomorrow shaking the tree at PhilHealth,” he said. “I plan to reorganize it and impose upon them a single line of authority.”

“These people will no longer do. They’re already entrenched. Nothing will happen. It’ either I’m going to revamp it or consider everybody resigned there,” he went on.

The President earlier approved a task force recommendation to file cases against PhilHealth officials, including its former chief Ricardo Morales. Charges include graft, malversation and illegal use of public funds, gross misconduct and gross neglect, among others.

Among the alleged irregularities inside PhilHealth are the release of funds to hospitals under its interim reimbursement mechanism and its supposedly “overpriced” information technology project.