The P60 billion that must be returned to the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) as per the Supreme Court (SC) must not be sourced from assets or kickbacks to be recovered from those involved in the flood control projects corruption scandal.

House Deputy Speaker Iloilo 1st district Rep. Janette Garin gave both a legal and practical reason for this.

“I hope they are not suggesting that Congress - the House of Representatives and Senate - and Malacañang defy the [SC] decision to return the P60 billion remitted by PhilHealth to the national treasury last year by allocating the same amount in next year’s budget,” she said in a statement Monday, Dec. 8.

“The [SC] directive is clear: Congress must include the P60 billion in the 2026 outlay. Sourcing the amount from elsewhere would amount to defiance of a [SC] ruling,” Garin noted.

Congress and the executive branch are constitutionally obliged to comply with the SC directive to return P60 billion to PhilHealth by explicitly appropriating the amount in the proposed 2026 national budget, Garin said.

According to the deputy speaker, relying on the recovery of assets from individuals allegedly involved in ghost and substandard flood control projects--like what some sectors suggested would delay the return of funds to PhilHealth and prejudice millions of its members.

“I doubt whether the assets eventually recovered would even be sufficient. As of now, only P110 million has been voluntarily turned over by a Bulacan district engineer, while frozen bank accounts and other assets are valued at about P13 billion. Clearly, these amounts fall far short,” she said.

She added that asset recovery is subject to lengthy and complex legal proceedings that could take years to conclude.

“Hindi ko naman sila maintindihan--hindi ba mas maganda na ang pera ay siguradong hawak na, o tiyak na darating, kaysa umaasa sa perang hahanapin pa? (I really don’t understand them—wouldn’t it be better that the money is already secured, or guaranteed to come, rather than relying on money that still has to be searched for?)" asked Garin.

She recalled that in line with the directive of President Marcos last Sept. 20, the House of Representatives already included the P60 billion in the proposed 2026 national budget, a move subsequently supported by the Senate.

Garin, a former Department of Health (DOH) secretary, urged advocates claiming to defend PhilHealth to recognize the importance of what has already been secured through the budget process.

“PhilHealth is set to receive a total of P113 billion--P60 billion in restituted funds and an additional P53 billion in government subsidy,” Garin said.

Nonetheless, she emphasized that accountability must not stop at budget compliance. “Those responsible for the flood control mess must still be held accountable, and restitution must be relentlessly pursued."