Ex-PSALM chief tapped for top PhilHealth post

MANILA, Philippines — A former chief of the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) has been chosen to lead the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth), the state-run insurer dogged with corruption issues during the height of the pandemic.

President Marcos has appointed former PSALM top executive Emmanuel Rufino Ledesma Jr. as acting president and CEO of PhilHealth, Office of the Press Secretary officer-in-charge Cheloy Garafil said in a statement yesterday.

Ledesma took his oath before Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin yesterday. He is also a member of PhilHealth’s expert panel and board of directors.
Ledesma previously served as the president and CEO of PSALM, the state-run firm tasked to privatize the government’s power assets.

In 2020, a task force created by the Duterte administration recommended the filing of criminal and administrative charges against former PhilHealth officials over alleged violations of the anti-graft law, the revised penal code and the internal revenue code.

Among the irregularities that supposedly defrauded the state health insurer of billions in funds are the purchase of allegedly overpriced COVID-19 test kits and information technology equipment, the unauthorized disbursement of funds to hospitals that have not yet recorded pandemic infections, and the padding of hospital claims to the health insurer.