SEN. Richard Gordon, Senate blue ribbon committee chairman, yesterday recommended the filing of criminal charges against past and present officials of Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) for the state insurer’s losses in the past years.
Gordon made the recommendation to the Office of the Ombudsman as he disclosed the findings of the Senate Blue Ribbon committee which conducted an inquiry into the anomalies at PhilHealth last year.
The committee report did not cover findings and recommendations of the Senate committee of the whole which conducted three hearings the past weeks.
Gordon said the Blue Ribbon found irregularities entered into by PhilHealth officials as far as 2011 up to 2019, which included overpayments, upcasing, explosion of “favorite diseases” (cataract, pneumonia, diabetic ketoacidosis), cases of fraudulent claims (cataract, Caesarean section delivery, pneumonia, diabetes ketoacidosis, and ghost dialysis), holding of an “obscene” birthday party for Paolo Johann Perez (regional vice president of PhilHealth Region 4-B), extortion and bribery, irregular Christmas gratuity and salary adjustments, issuance of fake premium receipts to overseas Filipino workers, and inefficiency in the investigation and prosecution of fraud, among others.
Gordon said the following were recommended to be investigated by the Ombudsman for eventual filing of charges.
* Former Health Secretary Janet Garin, for plunder and violation of the Graft and Corrupt Practices Act for diverting some P10.6 billion funds intended for premiums of senior citizens in PhilHealth to the construction of DOH projects in 2015. Also recommended for filing of the same charges were Former Budget Secretary Florencio Abad and former PhilHealth president and CEO Alexander Padilla.
* Paolo Jonathan Perez, PhilHealth Mimaropa regional vice president, for trafficking in persons, as he received an “enormous box” as a gift on his undated birthday which had a woman dressed only in her underwear who danced in front of him and his guests.
* Dennis Adre (regional vice president for Region 11-Davao), and Valarie Hollero (RVP for Region 6), William Chavez (former RVP for Region 7), Jelbert Galicto (RVP for Caraga), Khaliquzzman Macabato (RVP for Bangsamoro Autonomous Region), Miriam Grace Pamonag (former RVP of Region 7), Masiding Alonto (RVP for Region 9), and Perez for violation of the Graft and Corrupt Practices Act. Administrative charges of serious dishonesty, gross neglect of duty, grave misconduct, and being notoriously undesirable were also recommended for filing against them.
It can be recalled that Perez, Hollero, Macabato, Alonto, Adre, and Chavez have filed their leaves of absences effective August 17 to give probe bodies a free hand in their investigations.
“The Ombudsman should conduct investigations as to the possibility of filing plunder charges against the officers responsible in PhilHealth. There is with the participation of many officers – collectively or singly – in the pillaging of PhilHealth an urgent need to determine whether or not plunder can be filed against alleged perpetrators of these crimes,” Gordon said.
PHILHEALTH MAFIA
Gordon said the named regional vice presidents (RVPs) are the true members of the PhilHealth mafia as they were involved in involved in the anomalous activities in PhilHealth.
The RVPs, however, denied the accusation, saying they are the “good mafia” and the “bad mafia” were PhilHealth’s executive committee composed of its senior vice presidents.
Gordon said an April 2018 report of the PhilHealth-Health Insurance Data Analytics Committee showed the RVPs were involved in overpayments of “All Case Rates” amounting to P46.16 million in 2013, P5825 in 2016 (Regions 1 and 8), and PP2.72 million in 2017 (NCR, Regions 1 and 2).
He also cited reports from the Commission on Audit which showed the RVPs were also engaged in overpayment of other claim benefits and upcasing including the case of a hospital in Bornga, Eastern Samar which only has 40 beds but its billing to PhilHealth amounted to P50.16 million in just one year, and another hospital in Oras, Eastern Samar which had 20 beds but collected P43.42 million from PhilHealth.
“These two hospitals are reportedly owned by Doctors Lloyd and Belen Umil,” Gordon said.
“PhilHealth is no longer being used to serve the people. It is now used to serve the interest of the powerful and the greedy inside the institution. With its infamously known failure to pay legitimate claims on time and its inordinate speed in the payment of dubious claims, upcasing, and overpayment, PhilHealth has become ‘FAILHEALTH’ and its economic life has become fragile kahit siya kumikita (even though she is earning),” Gordon added.
