In its letter dated June 10, 2020 to PhilHealth President and CEO Ricardo C. Morales, the Commission on Audit confirmed that it did not find losses of Php 154 B in any of its audited financial statements of the state Agency in the past 5 years.
The COA report was in response to a request made by PCEO Morales, shortly after assuming the presidency of PhilHealth, for a special audit of the alleged losses featured in a three-part news series by a broadsheet in 2019.
The COA letter stated that this was in “reference to your letter dated February 5, 2020 seeking the assistance of the Commission on Audit (COA) in clarifying the allegation that PhilHealth sustained losses amounting to 154 billion pesos over six years…” in relation to “… media reports alleging/claiming that PhilHealth has been operating on a loss due to overpayments/ fraud; particularly the second of a three-part news article series authored by Mr. Jovic Yee published by the Philippine Daily Inquirer on June 7, 2019 that stated “PhilHealth had lost a total of 154 billion pesos since 2013”.”
The COA confirmed that, “As culled from the audited financial statements (FS) of PhilHealth for five (5) years… nowhere can be found nor can be derived the purported losses in an aggregate amount of 154 billion pesos.”, adding that “… the alleged losses… did not appear on the published COA Annual Audit Reports on PhilHealth”.
The said COA letter validated Morales’ statements that from Day 1 of his presidency, he has been trying to uncover any alleged 154B loss in PhilHealth’s finances but could not find any. END
