Senate welcomes PhilHealth IRM suspension

Several senators welcomed the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation's (PhilHealth) suspension of its interim reimbursement mechanism (IRM) as a positive step towards transparency and allowing scrutiny of past fund releases.

Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri stated that the suspension will enable the Commission on Audit (COA) and the Office of the Ombudsman to monitor and account for the funds.

Zubiri further criticized the IRM, calling the release of large sums to healthcare institutions without a clear disbursement program or budget request, especially to private companies, highly irregular and prone to corruption.

PhilHealth announced the halt of advanced payments to hospitals to review the IRM's implementation and address issues raised during congressional inquiries.

Lawmakers had previously criticized the IRM for alleged favoritism, and the COA flagged the lack of liquidation for most of the P14.97 billion in IRM releases.

The suspension of the IRM was deemed long overdue by Senator Francis 'Kiko' Pangilinan.

PhilHealth Vice President Dr. Shirley Domingo acknowledged that the suspension might affect the immediate financial liquidity of some hospitals, as the IRM provides advance payments, and assured that the mechanism would be fixed before re-release.

The Philippine Hospital Association views the suspension as a serious matter, given the existing financial difficulties faced by many hospitals during the pandemic.