Walang nakikitang problema si Ways and Means Committee Chair Joey Salceda sa plano ng Department of Finance (DOF) na gamitin ang excess fund ng Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) para pampondo sa unprogrammed appropriations.
Aniya, taunan naman ay binibigyan ng subsidiya ang PhilHealth maliban pa sa kontribusyon ng mga miyembro nito.
Kaya naman kung ang inilalaang pondo na galing sa buwis ng taumbayan ay hindi naman nagagamit ng PhilHealth ay mas mainam na gamitin na lang ito pampondo ng iba pang programa ng pamahalaan kaysa mangutang.
“PhilHealth regularly receives a subsidy from the National Government on top of the premiums it collects from its members. In other words, that’s taxpayer money, not contributor money. I think the reasoning of the DOF is that, if taxpayer money is sleeping in PhilHealth, it’s better to use that money for other needs rather than borrow with interest. It saves the taxpayer money. It’s that simple,” sabi ni Salceda.
Paalala ni Salceda na hindi maganda na magkaroon ng sobrang pondo ang ating mga GOCC na natutulog lang imbes na magamit sa public investment.
Magdudulot kasi aniya ito ng mababang government spending na makaka-apekto sa pag-unlad ng bansa.
“We can’t have excess money sleeping around our GOCCs while withholding that same money from public investment. Low government spending reduces growth. Reduced growth creates poverty. Poverty creates hunger. Hunger creates disease,” paliwanag ng House Tax chief.
Dagdag pa ng economist solon, bibigyan naman uli ng subsidiya ang PhilHealth sa ilalim ng 2025 budget.
Sa kasalukuyan, pinaglaanan ng ₱162-billion na subsidiya ang state health insurer ngayong 2024. | ulat ni Kathleen Jean Forbes
