Independent health reform advocate Dr. Tony Leachon on Thursday, Dec. 11, warned that PhilHealth’s weakening capacity, driven by major funding decisions in recent years, is leaving more Filipino families vulnerable to medical debt, citing a new Boston Consulting Group (BCG) study showing that most households cannot afford even modest medical expenses without borrowing.

BCG’s nationwide study found out that 64 percent of Filipino families cannot cover a P10,000 medical bill out of pocket. The firm said its survey of 1,515 households revealed that this financial strain cuts across regions, incomes, and family structures.

Leachon said the findings reflect “political choices” that have weakened the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth), the institution mandated to protect Filipinos from financial catastrophe under the Universal Health Care (UHC) law.

“A new study by the Boston Consulting Group reveals a painful truth: most Filipino families cannot afford even modest medical expenses without falling into debt,” he said.

“This is not an accident. This is the predictable consequence of choices—political choices—that have weakened the very institution meant to protect every Filipino from financial catastrophe: PhilHealth.”

According to the health advocate, PhilHealth’s capacity has been undermined by major funding decisions over the past two years.

“Over the past two years, we have witnessed a systematic erosion of PhilHealth’s capacity to serve its mandate,” said Leachon.

He explained that P60 billion was transferred out of PhilHealth in 2024, draining resources meant for patient care.

Leachon added that, this year, the state health insurer received a zero budget, an unprecedented blow to the backbone of our Universal Health Care (UHC) system.

He said that funds meant for PhilHealth have been shifted to discretionary programs like MAIFIP, bypassing the safeguards, actuarial discipline, and accountability mechanisms built into the UHC law.

The doctor noted that arrears from PAGCOR, PCSO, and sin tax allocations remain unpaid, violating the very funding architecture Congress designed to guarantee health security for all.

“And beneath all this lies a deeper illness: patronage politics, short-termism, and a lack of national vision for a health system that should uplift—not endanger—our people,” Leachon said.

“When PhilHealth is defunded, families pay the price. When UHC is ignored, patients suffer. When public funds are diverted, the poor fall deeper into debt,” he went on.

Leachon said the BCG findings should serve as a wake-up call, warning that the country is moving toward a system where illness automatically leads to indebtedness.

“This is why the BCG findings should alarm every Filipino. A nation where illness leads to indebtedness is a nation that has abandoned its duty to its people,” he said.

“We cannot allow this to continue,” he added.

He called for a full and transparent COA audit of PhilHealth and all related fund transfers, and he also seeks accountability from public officials who undermined the UHC law.

Leachon stressed the need for the immediate settlement of arrears from PAGCOR, PCSO, and sin tax allocations.

He added that the government must restore PhilHealth’s rightful budget and ensure that it is protected from political interference.

He underscored the need to return to the spirit of UHC, which he described as “equity, sustainability, and dignity for every Filipino.”

“Health is not a privilege reserved for the connected or the wealthy. Health is a basic right. And a government that fails to protect that right fails in its most fundamental duty,” he said.

“The Filipino people deserve better. Our families deserve security. Our nation deserves a health system worthy of its promise. It is time to restore integrity, vision, and justice to our health institutions—before more Filipino families are pushed into debt simply for wanting to live.”