THE Supreme Court (SC) on Friday ordered the government to return the ₱60 billion excess funds transferred to the national treasury back to the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) through the 2026 General Appropriations Act (GAA).
The SC also prohibited the further transfer of the remaining ₱29.9 billion.
The decision, announced by SC spokesperson Atty. Camille Ting, is immediately executory and stems from petitions filed by Senator Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III, the Philippine Medical Association, the 1SAMBAYAN Coalition, Bayan Muna chairperson Neri Colmenares, and others.
The petitioners sought to block the transfer of PhilHealth’s excess funds, arguing that it would negatively impact the agency’s ability to provide healthcare services.
PhilHealth had previously been ordered to return ₱89.9 billion in excess funds to the national treasury. Last year, it remitted ₱60 billion before the SC issued a temporary restraining order to halt the transfer of the remaining ₱29.9 billion.
In response to the SC’s decision, Executive Secretary Ralph Recto, who was the Finance secretary when the excess PhilHealth funds were ordered to be transferred, stated that the Palace respects the ruling.
Recto emphasized that the Executive branch was simply complying with a congressional mandate under the 2024 GAA and that the Department of Finance (DOF) acted with the approval of the Office of the Government Corporate Counsel (OGCC), the Governance Commission for GOCCs (GCG), and the Commission on Audit (COA). He also asserted that PhilHealth’s ability to deliver services was never impaired by the fund transfer.
