PhilHealth must sue scammers

When I read the report that Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) confirmed that the agency has been defrauded and paid claims of dead kidney patients but clarified these have been properly investigated and those involved charged, I was shocked knowing simply that PhilHealth has gone out of its way to help Filipinos undergo dialysis three times a week at huge personal expense. This is why when PhilHealth included dialysis as part of its program it was truly a blessing to many Filipinos who have a great need for dialysis treatment.

We learned that at least 19 dialysis centers are undergoing investigation, aside from a number of doctors. PhilHealth chief legal officer Rodolfo del Rosario said they have established that WellMed filed fraudulent claims and that the agency has stopped paying claims since February.

He added that PhilHealth has been receiving numerous complaints and that his office is investigating about 2,000 health providers. Despite the irregularities, PhilHealth officials said that it is financially stable with P11.6-billion in funds.

Mind you, two years ago when I had my kidney transplant, I was able to get financial support from PhilHealth which truly helped me get through my operation. This is why I was thankful my transplant was done at the Vicente Sotto Medical Center. I don’t think PhilHealth would have helped me if I had my transplant operation in a private hospital.

At this point I just hope that the criminal-minded “mafia” within PhilHealth has been exposed. These government employees should know by now that President Rodrigo “Digong” Duterte doesn’t tolerate corruption under his administration and even asked for the resignation of PhilHealth officials. However, I don’t think it is necessary for these officials to be removed from their positions if Malacañang realized that this scam did not involve top PhilHealth officials. Let’s just hope that PhilHealth will finally file the necessary cases against these scammers and send them to jail.

* * *

Honestly, I didn’t know that Cebu City had the Sugbo Bike Lanes Board led by Cebu City Environment and Natural Resources Office head Ma. Nida Cabrera. They have a pilot project, a bike lane starting from Barangay Calamba along V. Rama to B. Rodriguez to General Maxilom Avenue to S. Osmeña Boulevard to Plaza Independencia. This is a great idea if it is implemented.

Three weeks ago, I went on a vacation in the UK and the Scandinavian countries and almost all of them had bike lanes and, yes, bicycles for rent that are lined up in the streets ready for use. These bicycles can be taken from one street depot, then used for a fee then left in another depot so it can truly be used for transportation. In Europe this is truly a plus factor especially if you do not want to use their public transport and especially if you do not have a car.

However, the situation in the Philippines is totally different from that of Europe in the sense that our climate is quite hot for bikers. The reality today is that we have become a city where the motorcycle has become the new king of the road. So the huge question is will Cebu City become a true bicycle city like most European cities? I think the answer to that is if and when the City of Cebu puts in a bicycle for rent scheme like what they have in London and most European cities.

Mind you, Nida Cabrera doesn’t know that in 2004, I had a bicycle lane plan that would begin behind the Guadalupe Church using both sides of the Guadalupe River where we have to acquire the five-meter easement and put in two fences to protect the bicycle users from falling into the river and protect the biker from the other side. The two fences assure us that when that project will be done the people living beside the Guadalupe River can no longer dump trash into the river.

It was a project that would give Cebu City a bicycle lane from the Guadalupe Church all the way downtown while at the same time stop people from dumping trash into the river. At that time Mayor Tomas Osmeña liked the idea. But since it wasn’t his idea, he asked me to secure the funding for that project. At that time, the south side of the Guadalupe River was to be funded by then representative Tony Cuenco, while the North side was to be funded by Rep. Raul del Mar. But it fizzled out!