Not another PhilHealth mess, please

August 25, 2024

Why is the Marcos Jr government maneuvering to centralize PhilHealth’s robust funds when ordinary Filipinos – the PhilHealth members and sponsored indigents – are receiving less and less health services? This is unraveling to be just one of the many ironies in the Marcos Jr government’s optimistic portrayal of the national situation.

Under the knife: the 2024 health budget

September 8, 2023

FEATURE

The 2024 proposed health budget reflects the Marcos Jr administration’s utter neglect of public health.

Chronically ailing PH public health system under Duterte

April 7, 2022

FEATURES

Duterte has not taken significant measures that will strengthen the public health system and make health services accessible and equitable to the Filipino people.

Proposed 2021 health budget shrinks, neglects public health–IBON 

September 22, 2020

NEWS

The lower budget for the public health in the proposed national government budget for 2021 will keep health care inaccessible and expensive for too many Filipinos.

Heed Cuba lessons, boost public health care, DOH urged

September 9, 2016

  Research group IBON said that Filipinos will benefit if the government adopts Cuba’s model of a state-run health care system. The group stressed that people’s access to this social service is becoming more limited by Philippine health services being increasingly run by the private sector for profit. Department of Health (DOH) officials recently toured […]

Has PhilHealth, the country’s so-called universal health care program, benefited the Filipino people?

April 24, 2016

#BeyondElections2016 | All the presidential bets vow to continue Philhealth. But has this so-called universal health care program benefited the Filipino people? The 2015 National Government budget for PhilHealth rose to Php39.1 billion from only Php3.5 billion in 2011. It is now said to cover 87% of the entire population as of 2013. Yet, according […]

“No home birthing” policy: burden to Filipino mothers

March 8, 2016

A mother in the town of Mansalay, Oriental Mindoro who belongs to the Mangyan tribe recalled how her husband had to pay a penalty at the municipal hall so that he could get their child’s registration of live birth. Meanwhile, another mother in the hinterlands of Eastern Samar had to borrow money to rent a house for […]