Sen. Loren Legarda on Saturday welcomed the Supreme Court’s decision directing the government to return the ?60 billion earlier transferred from the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) back to the agency through the 2026 General Appropriations Act (GAA).
The High Court likewise prohibited any further transfer of the remaining ?29.9 billion, making the ruling immediately executory.
‘This decision is correct and consistent with what we have long fought for-PhilHealth’s funds must remain with PhilHealth. These subsidies exist to protect the Filipino people, not to be diverted elsewhere,’ Legarda said.
PhilHealth had originally been instructed to remit a total of ?89.9 billion in excess funds to the National Treasury. Of this amount, ?60 billion was already remitted last year before the Supreme Court issued a temporary restraining order (TRO), halting the transfer of the remaining ?29.9 billion.
Both the House of Representatives and the Senate have since incorporated the restoration of the ?60 billion into the 2026 General Appropriations Bill (GAB) being discussed in the Senate. This was the clarification Legarda underscored during the Senate session on December 4, 2025.
During the same session, Legarda reiterated her longstanding position that Congress has a responsibility to ensure that PhilHealth receives the support it needs to deliver essential health services. She stressed that the allocation under the 2026 NEP remains insufficient and does not comply with the mandated sin tax law.
‘Congress owes the Filipino people a properly funded PhilHealth,’ Legarda emphasized. ‘In my interpellation on the General Principles of the 2026 budget, I raised concerns over the gaps in PhilHealth’s appropriations for 2024, 2025, and 2026. We must ask where the funds were originally placed, why they were removed, and how we intend to fully restore them.’
Legarda also underscored the need for transparency and accountability in the use of PhilHealth subsidies.
She formally requested PhilHealth and the Department of Health (DOH) to submit detailed liquidation reports to ensure that the restored funds are used efficiently and aligned with the agency’s mandate. ‘As we restore these amounts, we must also demand full transparency,’ Legarda said. ‘I asked PhilHealth and the DOH to account for these funds so that we can determine how the restored budget will genuinely benefit our people.’
Building on this, Legarda reiterated that accountability must go hand in hand with adequate and reliable funding. She called for the full restoration of all funding deficits across all sources, including earmarked revenues from sin taxes, PAGCOR, and PCSO, which have accumulated over the years.
A long-time advocate for accessible and high-quality healthcare, Legarda reaffirmed her commitment to protecting the financial stability of PhilHealth and ensuring that its resources directly support Filipino families, especially the most vulnerable.
‘Health care is not a privilege; it is a right. Every peso intended for the people’s health must be safeguarded,’ she said.