Several medical associations on Thursday, July 2, 2026, called on the Marcos administration to ensure that the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) has regular and sufficient funding for the benefit of all its members.
In an open letter to Executive Secretary Ralph Recto, the groups -- led by the Philippine Medical Association (PMA) and the Philippine College of Physicians (PCP) -- said it is imperative for the government to perform its mandate provided by the Universal Health Care (UHC) Act.
Government urged to stop underfunding PhilHealth
"The solution is clear: government must stop diverting PhilHealth funds, and it must stop underfunding PhilHealth," said the groups. "If government fulfills its obligations under the Universal Health Care Act, PhilHealth can strengthen benefits for every Filipino, rather than just a few," they furthered.
In doing so, the medical groups said all Filipinos will be in unison in welcoming a legitimate UHC program. "Healthcare should unite us, not divide us. No Filipino should have to choose between protecting the worker who pays premiums and the poor patient who cannot," said the medical groups.
Recto's proposal for differentiated benefits opposed
Earlier, Recto pushed for the expansion of benefits for more than 33 million paying members of PhilHealth. Recto said this is because their current PhilHealth benefits are not commensurate with their monthly contributions while the non-paying members get the equal benefits as those who pay.
The medical associations said they are not in favor of Recto's proposal to have different types of benefit packages for its members. They said they disagree with Recto that there should be more benefits allocated for paying members (direct contributors) than indigent members (indirect contributors).
Healthcare professionals see patients, not contributors
"As healthcare professionals, we care for Filipinos from every walk of life. We do not see them as direct or indirect contributors. We see them as patients who need our care," said the medical associations. "That is why we are deeply concerned by your proposal to provide different PhilHealth benefits for direct and indirect contributors," they added.
They said such a proposal will only result to a division of members by having different tiers of healthcare protection. "The UHC Act recognizes the contributions of all workers while also giving priority to those who cannot afford to pay. These are not competing rights - they are complementary principles that ensure every Filipino is protected," they said.
Wide coalition of medical groups sign open letter
Aside from PMA and PCP, other signatories of the open letter were the Philippine College of Surgeons, Philippine Association of Medical Technologists, Philippine League of Government and Private Midwives Inc., Philippine Pharmacists Association, Philippine Nurses Association, Philippine Neurological Association, Philippine Obstetrical and Gynecological Society, Philippine Pediatric Society, Philippine Academy of Family Physicians, and Philippine Academy of Ophthalmology, among others.
