MANILA, Philippines – Former health secretaries sounded the alarm on the drastic cut to the health promotion budget in the 2027 General Appropriations Bill (GAB), as it supposedly violates the Universal Health Care (UHC) Law. 

Under the 2027 GAB, the House of Representatives allocated P275.85 billion for the Department of Health‘s new appropriations, up from the P263.62 billion in the 2027 National Expenditure Program (NEP).

But the House, in its version, reduced the health promotion budget to P485 million, from the P2.5 billion in the NEP. 

On Thursday, October 22, Healthy Philippines Alliance warned that the House did not follow Section 30 of the UHC Law, which provides that “the cost of implementing health promotion programs shall be at least one percent (1%) of the DOH’s total budget appropriations.”

“A budget cut of this scale undermines the mandate of the UHC Law. It is counterproductive to our goal of achieving a financially sustainable Universal Health Care which is fundamentally guaranteed to every Filipino,” said Dr. Manuel Dayrit, a health secretary during the Arroyo administration.

Dayrit urged Congress to treat health promotion as a core investment rather than an expendable cost, as health promotion and disease prevention is the foundation of the UHC.

Rappler reached out to Nueva Ecija 1st District Representative Mika Suansing, the House appropriations chairperson, for comment. Her staff said she is already on maternity leave.

Rappler also reached out to Bataan 2nd District Representative Albert Garcia, the DOH’s budget sponsor, for comment.

“Slashing funding for the prevention of noncommunicable diseases or NCDs will ultimately cost the government far more in secondary care and emergency hospitalizations in the future. Diabetes, heart and kidney disease, and hypertension are overwhelming Filipino families and draining our healthcare system,” said Dr. Jaime Galvez Tan, lead convenor of Healthy Philippines Alliance and health secretary during the Ramos administration.

Dr. Esperanza Cabral, another health chief during the Arroyo administration, said the government cannot protect vulnerable communities in a “severely underfunded” health promotion budget.

“When the budget for health promotion shrinks to P400 million, Filipino families, especially those from low-income households, lose the support and resources they need to protect them from preventable risks. It strips the poor of their right to services that can save their lives,” she said.

The House’s budget amendments review subcommittee proposed budget realignments for the DOH amounting to P28.36 billion.

Of the amount, P25 billion was added to the Medical Assistance to Indigent and Financially Incapacitated Patients (MAIFIP) program, which civil society groups have described as “soft pork.”

Other DOH programs with higher funding figures were the Health Facilities Enhancement Program, nationally procured commodities for prevention and control of communicable disease, and operations of DOH regional hospitals.

The Senate is still deliberating the 2027 budget proposal. A bicameral conference committee will be convened if there are differences in the versions of the House and Senate, before the proposed spending plan is brought to the President. – Rappler.com