PhilHealth chief to senators: ‘It’s wrong to point the finger at me’

Metro Manila, Philippines — Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) President and CEO Emmanuel Ledesma Jr. drew the ire of senators on Tuesday, Nov. 12, as he spoke candidly on issues hounding the agency.

During the plenary deliberations on PhilHealth’s proposed budget, Senator JV Ejercito confronted Ledesma about the P89.9 billion that the agency declared as surplus, most of which had been reverted to the Bureau of Treasury, while the Supreme Court halted the transfer of the remaining nearly P30 billion.

Ejercito said the funds should have been used to reduce patient out-of-pocket expenses, questioning why the state health insurer covered only a small portion of patient medical bills.

Ejercito, who had previously urged Malacañang to replace Ledesma over these issues, requested a suspension of the rules to allow Ledesma, rather than the budget sponsor, Senator Pia Cayetano, to answer his questions.

In response, Ledesma noted that it was only his second year as PhilHealth chief. He explained that prior to his appointment, there had been no improvements to the benefit packages for 12 years.

He also pointed out that fewer people visited hospitals due to the pandemic, while the collection of premium contributions continued, accumulating surplus funds.

“Siguro naman po, maybe you can give me some slack, Mr. President. As soon as I came in immediately may adjustment,” Ledesma said.

He admitted he’s not proud of PhilHealth’s multibillion-peso cash reserve but noted that he’s not solely to blame.

“Parang mali rin ata to pin the blame fully on me. Why? Kasi again uulitin ko po di ba itong perang na ito it was piling up through the years. This has all accumulated for a long period of time. I think it’s wrong to point the finger at me,” Ledesma said.

This elicited a sharp response from Ejercito.

“Sino ituturo namin? ‘Di ba dapat leadership to?” he asked.

The back-and-forth continued until Senate Majority Leader Francis Tolentino interjected, reminding Ledesma to "temper his responses with an iota of humility and answer correctly the questions being propounded by a member of this chamber."

“May I remind the president of PhilHealth, the resource person to please answer the question with respect and also to temper his voice,” Senator Win Gatchalian, who was presiding at that time, likewise said.

Ledesma apologized.

Ejercito clarified that he had nothing personal against Ledesma. However, in a text message, he admitted that he “felt offended” by the way Ledesma answered his questions.

“May pagka presko! Bordering on bastos,” he said.

Ejercito’s half-brother, Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada, later chimed in, reminding government agencies that the Senate has the authority to defer approval of their budget.

“It has come to my attention that there is a head of agency who answers disrespectfully in answering questions of senators… We can defer your budget, we've done that before and we can do that again. And this warning goes to all heads of agencies concerned,” Estrada said.

Meanwhile, Senator Robin Padilla denied talks that he personally confronted and cursed at Ledesma after the incident.

“Wala po ako karapatan na pagalitan kahit na sino na kalihim. Ako po ay nag advice sa kanya,” Padilla said.

The approval of the Department of Health’s budget, along with PhilHealth’s, was deferred as other lawmakers who were absent during the late-night session expressed their desire to ask questions in the next session.