Where’s the care in Universal Health Care?

Since he assumed the leadership of the Upper Chamber last May, Senate President Francis Joseph “Chiz” Escudero has proudly chalked up the approval of four administration-endorsed priority bills. The printed enrolled copies of the four bills were transmitted this week to Malacañang for the signing into law by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. (PBBM). Escudero added the Senate also approved on second reading four international treaties entered into by the Philippines.

Escudero believes several more priority bills in the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) agenda that are already in advanced stages of the legislative mill of the Senate will be approved before the 19th Congress goes on recess this coming Sept. 28. This coincides with the filing of certificates of candidacy for those running in the May 2025 national and local elections.

Escudero assured the public that the Senate will remain steadfast in its being known as the so-called “independent republic” that would shepherd vital legislations beyond partisanship or political colors. He promised to deliver the rest of the LEDAC list of priority bills for passage into law, including the proposed 2025 General Appropriations Act (GAA) bill concurrently being taken up in both chambers of Congress.

At the Kapihan sa Manila Bay news forum last Wednesday, Escudero reported the four enrolled bills were earlier ratified by both the Senate and the House of Representatives. Yesterday, Malacanang announced PBBM already signed into law one of them as Republic Act (RA) 12019, or the Loss and Damage Act of 2024. Three more enrolled bills are still awaiting approval of PBBM. These are the 12 percent value added tax on digital services; the Anti-Smuggling bill and the Seafarers’ bill.

The Senate likewise acted swiftly on pending local bills that the Lower Chamber much earlier approved, Escudero added. The Senate approved on third and final reading at least 22 local bills last week, and another batch of 13 more local bills got approved on third reading also last Tuesday. Escudero conceded the slow grind of bills at the Upper Chamber in the past has been the source of friction with their House colleagues.

“Now, no more conflict,” Senate President Escudero quipped and guffawed. Or, he is speaking too soon?

Although just freshly installed as the country’s third highest elected official of the land, Escudero has already earned very high trust rating at 67 percent based on the July survey done by Octa Research. In fact, Escudero scored higher than Vice President Sara Duterte, who got 65 percent trust rating. This is considering the survey period took place less than two months after Escudero took over the Senate after a successful ouster plot against erstwhile Senate president Juan Miguel Zubiri.

Turning 55 years old this coming October, Escudero revealed he has already completely stopped smoking cigarettes after an episode of hypertension. Except drinking black coffee without sugar and cream, he is “fasting” from taking breakfast. But his long years of being a chain smoker has already caught up with him. He has fits of smoker’s cough which he blames on a dry throat whenever he does prolonged talking.

Talking about health, the Senate chief vowed to ensure the immediate passage into law of the proposed amendments of RA No. 11223, or the Universal Health Care Act. The Senate unanimously approved last Tuesday on third and final reading Senate Bill (SB) 2620, which, among other things, seeks the revision of premium rates for direct contributors of the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth). SB 2620 also sought to ensure that no part of its funds or income is transferred to the national government to prevent a repeat of the controversial order of the Department of Finance (DOF) to transfer the unused P89.9-billion subsidy to the PhilHealth back to the National Treasury.

Although he has little information on the controversial fund transfer, Escudero expressed his firm determination to get to the bottom of the issue at the budget hearing of PhilHealth. At the outset, Escudero suspects the excess funds of PhilHealth have been largely because of the agency’s not paying its financial obligations, especially hospital reimbursements of PhilHealth members. A case in point, he recalled, PhilHealth owed the Sorsogon Provincial Hospital as much as P450 million, unpaid for two years while he was still the governor.

Escudero disclosed he has asked Sen. JV Ejercito, who is the principal author of SB 2620, to immediately ask their House counterparts to convene the bicameral conference committee (bicam). The Senate and House versions of the proposed amendments to the Universal Health Care Act is included in the LEDAC priority bills. Thus, the need to convene the bicam to reconcile the big differences of the two versions of the same bill.

Called the “third chamber of Congress,” the bicam holds closed-door sessions going over twin versions of a proposed law separately approved by the two chambers.

The controversial transfer of PhilHealth funds originated from bicam “insertion” of a provision in the Congress-approved 2024 GAA that authorized it. The questioned Department of Finance (DOF) order of transfer invoked this provision as the legal basis for the return of the unused subsidy of the PhilHealth and other government agencies back to the national coffers.

Escudero though could not understand why Congress was impleaded in the petition before the Supreme Court (SC) on this transfer of PhilHealth funds. A lawyer by profession, Escudero argued the petitioner can just ask the SC to declare the DOF order “unconstitutional” since Congress cannot do anything by way of moving, or deciding one way or the other, on these funds.

Ironically, the petitioner is a fellow lawyer, Senate minority leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III.

“Every senator has his own idea,” Escudero the Senate chief pointed out.

For now, Escudero counts on the Senate committee on health headed by Sen. Bong Go to summon PhilHealth to answer for this fund transfer furor.

Obviously, the problem lies in the rules and regulations and existing policies of PhilHealth. PBBM has already instructed PhilHealth to expand and increase its present medical assistance packages. We have the Universal Health Care Act but no care at all from PhilHealth.