The House of Representatives has moved to return the P60 billion to the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. by inserting the amount into the proposed 2026 national budget, following the Supreme Court ruling that voided the earlier transfer of Philippine Health Insurance Corporation funds to the national treasury.
House appropriations panel vice chair Zia Alonto Adiong said the chamber used the only lawful remedy available, which is to restore the money through the national budget. “If there is a process for getting, there is a process for returning. And that is through the national budget. The mechanism for returning the money is the same as the mechanism [for] getting it,” Adiong said.
The remarks responded to calls from Caloocan Bishop Pablo Virgilio David, who urged President Marcos and Congress not to “simply backfill” the P60 billion, but instead recover the amount from those who allegedly benefited from the diversion.
Adiong said the House acted immediately after the President issued a directive in September, ahead of the high court ruling released on December 3. “The House has already complied, following the President’s order, and regardless of the result of cases pending before the high court,” he said.
PhilHealth was initially allocated P53 billion under the 2026 National Expenditure Program. The additional P60 billion raises its total budget to P113 billion. Adiong said the House realigned savings from the Department of Public Works and Highways’ proposed budget, which he said freed P255.5 billion for social programs. He added that the move will strengthen universal health care and widen coverage.
Calls for accountability continue despite the fund return. Petitioners want a full review of how the P60 billion was spent. Bayan Muna chair Neri Colmenares said there must be an “accounting of where the P60 billion was spent” and what projects benefited from it. “Where did you spend it? There must be an accounting, that’s the first step that should be ordered by the court,” he said.
Colmenares said the government must disclose which unprogrammed appropriations received the diverted funds and how much each program obtained. He added that the Department of Finance must submit its own accounting to the court and that a separate investigation is needed because “many people may not put so much credibility on a government accounting report.”
The NAGKAISA Labor Coalition also called on the Ombudsman to form a fact-finding task force that will determine “who approved, implemented, and benefited from the diversion” of health funds into unprogrammed appropriations and unfunded infrastructure projects, including alleged ghost projects. As one of the petitioners-in-intervention, NAGKAISA said it welcomes the Supreme Court ruling but noted that “clearly, the fight does not end here.”
In its decision, the Supreme Court denied requests to determine the possible liability of Finance Secretary Ralph Recto for technical malversation or plunder, noting that the petition before the Court only deals with questions of grave abuse of discretion.
