MANILA, Philippines - Four more eye centers in Metro Manila are being investigated over questionable reimbursement claims.
The Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) had already stopped processing the payment claims of the four eye centers pending the investigation, according to Minguita Padilla, head executive staff of Health Secretary Janette Garin and Eye Bank Foundation of the Philippines chairman.
“They are being investigated but I am not saying their claims are fraudulent,” she said.
“I want to make that clear. PhilHealth did not close them down but the processing of their claims had only been stopped for now.”
The eye centers were found engaging in “solicitation, recruitment (of patients) and unnecessary procedures,” Padilla said.
Their claims were around P400 million to P500 million, including two hospitals in the provinces that were involved in alleged pneumonia fraud, she added.
If PhilHealth finds their records clean, PhilHealth will pay them, Padilla said.
“But pending that, payment had been withheld,” she said.