The following is a complete statement from the United Private Hospital Unions of the Philippines, a health workers’ group composed of the country’s 32 biggest hospitals.
STATEMENT VIA GRAPHIC PLUS | QUEZON CITY – On July 15, the United Private Hospital Unions of the Philippines (UPHUP) welcomed PhilHealth’s expanded benefits but strongly demanded that the state insurer carve out a dedicated, hazard-aligned coverage package for the nation’s healthcare workers, while slamming the blatant “credit-grabbing” of Executive Secretary Ralph Recto in recent public announcements.
While any reduction in patients’ out-of-pocket expenses is a necessary step forward, the group emphasized that these reforms are institutional mandates under the Universal Health Care Law, not personal favors to be used for political public relations.
The Universal Health Care Law envisions a health system where every Filipino has equitable access to quality, affordable, and comprehensive health services. It also mandates PhilHealth to continuously expand and improve benefit packages and financial protection for its members as part of achieving universal health coverage.
For this reason, while we commend the recent expansion of benefits, we stress that much more remains to be done. Filipino patients continue to shoulder significant medical expenses, hospitals struggle with inadequate resources, and healthcare workers continue to face understaffing, low wages, delayed benefits, and difficult working conditions.
UPHUP believes that healthcare workers deserve distinct consideration in PhilHealth’s benefit structure. For the longest time, our medical frontliners have been left behind by the government’s development programs and national projects, receiving endless praises but very little structural support. Carving out a dedicated, hazard-aligned PhilHealth package is one concrete way to finally bridge this long-standing gap.
As UST Hospital Union President Donell Siazon aptly stated: “For health workers, being partners in the implementation of policies, dapat may dedicated package. After all, we are all members of PhilHealth.”
Healthcare workers are not only financial contributors to PhilHealth—they are the indispensable partners who actually deliver these healthcare services to the Filipino people. It is therefore reasonable and highly urgent to establish benefit packages that recognize their unique role and daily exposure to occupational risks.
We likewise find it necessary to raise an important question regarding the public messaging surrounding these reforms.
Recent announcements have prominently credited Executive Secretary Ralph Recto for pushing the expansion of PhilHealth benefits. While any public official may advocate policy reforms, PhilHealth is governed by its own Board and operates under laws enacted by Congress. The implementation of benefit packages is an institutional responsibility, not the accomplishment of a single individual.
This naturally raises a legitimate public question.
Is the prominent attribution of these reforms to Executive Secretary Recto merely a communications strategy? Is it intended to rehabilitate public perception following the controversy surrounding the transfer of PhilHealth funds to the National Treasury, an issue in which Secretary Recto became one of the principal government defenders?
As President Donell Siazon observed: “Bakit kay Recto ang credit? Would that mean, he is in control of PhilHealth? Why Recto?”
These are valid questions that deserve transparent answers. Public confidence in PhilHealth is strengthened not by personality-centered publicity but by institutions faithfully performing their legal mandate.
UPHUP therefore urges PhilHealth to move beyond incremental reforms and fully implement the Universal Health Care Act by:
- Continuously expanding benefit packages consistent with the objectives of the UHC Law;
- Reducing out-of-pocket healthcare expenses for Filipino families;
- Speeding up reimbursement and claims processing for hospitals and healthcare providers;
- Exploring enhanced benefit packages for healthcare workers who faithfully contribute to and sustain the country’s healthcare system;
- Strengthening transparency, accountability, and public participation in PhilHealth’s policymaking; and
- Ensuring that every reform ultimately advances universal, equitable, and quality healthcare for all Filipinos.
Healthcare is not a privilege reserved for those who can afford it. It is a right guaranteed by law.
The true measure of PhilHealth’s success is not the number of press releases issued nor the personalities credited for policy decisions. It is whether every Filipino—especially workers, patients, and their families—can finally experience the promise of universal healthcare envisioned by the Constitution and the Universal Health Care Act.
— — —
