Executive Secretary Ralph Recto on Friday said he respects the Supreme Court’s (SC) decision ordering the return of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation’s (PhilHealth) unused funds worth P60 billion.
This amount forms part of the P89.9 billion in unused PhilHealth funds.
SC spokesperson Atty. Camille Ting, citing the ruling, said the vote to return the unused funds to PhilHealth was unanimous.
‘TAs we always said before the decision, the Executive will follow the Supreme Court’s order, just as we followed and complied with the directive of Congress then to use the dormant funds of GOCCs for the benefit of the people,’ Recto said in a statement written in Filipino.
‘We reiterate that the Executive simply complied with the congressional mandate under the 2024 GAA, and that the Department of Finance’s (DOF) role is solely in revenue generation and debt and deficit management. We believed then, and still believe, that the directive was a common-sense approach to optimize government coffers without resorting to additional borrowing or new taxes,’ he also said.
In September, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. announced that PhilHealth funds would be restored, following savings generated from other government agencies, particularly the Department of Public Works and Highways