Lawmaker bares P1.2-B irregularities in DOH

MANILA, Philippines - Rep. Terry Ridon exposed yesterday irregularities in the Department of Health (DOH) involving more than P1.2 billion in taxpayers’ money.

Quoting a Commission on Audit (COA) report, he said infrastructure projects worth P836 million in eight regions under the health facilities enhancement program (HFEP) were “not completed within specified contract time nor started as of Dec. 31, 2014.”

He said eight other health facilities costing P72.98 million “were not utilized despite their completion, hence, the utilization thereof had not been maximized.”

He said medical equipment worth P302.9 million procured under HFEP were found either unutilized for up to three years, or defective, or in some cases, not received by the health facilities for which they were allocated.

Ridon added that there were also irregularities in the DOH medical assistance program (MAP).

“There were lapses in the grant and utilization of financial assistance under MAP amounting to P32.1 million. These include excessive payments of medical assistance amounting to P1.2 million and P30.9-million financial assistance funds used for procurement of drugs and medicine intended for ‘pay patients’,” he said.

“It was downright deplorable to discover that funds under MAP, which is supposedly for the benefit of indigent patients, have been used to cover expenses of paying patients in government hospitals,” he said.

Expired, unutilized

He pointed out that the COA report also shows that drugs worth P7 million procured for two regional DOH offices and six hospitals have “expired or remained unutilized due to lack of proper planning, monitoring and control on utilization or distribution.”

“For 2016, the DOH is asking for P1.8 billion for MAP and a whopping P27 billion for HFEP. We should ask for details about these appropriations and an explanation for the irregularities,” he said.

Ridon also questioned a proposed special provision in the 2016 DOH budget authorizing the health secretary “to change the barangay health stations, rural health units, public or LGU (local government unit) hospitals and other health care facilities to be constructed, upgraded, expanded, rehabilitated or repaired or equipment to be purchased within each of the activity” under the HFEP.

“Essentially, this turns the whole HFEP budget into the health secretary’s own pork barrel, as she has the absolute discretion in changing the details of projects,” he said.

“While the HFEP is supposedly a program that will improve and modernize medical equipment of public hospitals, most hospitals in the country remain neglected. Worse, many indigent patients still need to have their diagnostic and laboratory examinations done outside public hospitals due to unavailability of reagents and unfixed lab machines,” he said.

He proposed that part of HFEP funds be given directly to hospitals for their operational expenses and assistance to poor patients.