A protest outside the Department of Health’s main office in Manila on Monday turned into a renewed call for the resignation of Health Secretary Teodoro “Ted” Herbosa, with a health advocacy group accusing him of presiding over a worsening public health situation.
The Health Alliance for Democracy (HEAD) said the crisis has escalated during Herbosa’s tenure, citing what it described as failures in financial stewardship, infrastructure oversight, and protection of patients’ rights. In a statement released during the rally, the group faulted the health secretary for not responding to public demands surrounding PhilHealth funds, declaring, “Despite widespread calls for transparency and accountability over the use of the P60 billion PhilHealth funds, Herbosa chose silence — complicity through inaction.”
HEAD also pointed to Herbosa’s role as chair of the PhilHealth Board of Directors, alleging that he permitted the transfer of P89.9 billion in PhilHealth resources to the National Treasury. According to the group, these amounts should not have been treated as surplus. “These funds were never ‘excess’; they were the result of PhilHealth’s criminal underspending to expand its benefit packages and reduce out-of-pocket spending of patients,” it said.
Concerns over financial management were raised alongside issues involving health infrastructure. In October, the Department of Health disclosed before the Independent Commission for Infrastructure that a significant number of super health centers funded under the Health Facilities Enhancement Program were either non-existent or unusable. Of the 878 centers listed, 300 were identified as “ghost” or non-operational facilities, 365 remained under construction, 196 were marked as ready for occupancy, and 17 were only partially operational.
The status of these facilities resurfaced during a bicameral conference on Saturday, when lawmakers said the health department did not fully reveal which super health centers still required funding in the proposed 2026 national budget. HEAD argued that the stalled or non-functioning centers have left many communities without basic medical services, particularly those in rural areas and low-income populations. “This neglect is a direct assault on the health rights of the most vulnerable Filipinos,” the group said.
The organization also criticized the handling of the Medical Assistance for Indigents and Financially Incapacitated Patients program, known as Maifip. While the program is intended to ease patients’ expenses through financial aid facilitated by guarantee letters, HEAD claimed the absence of clear departmental guidelines has allowed it to be politicized, turning “healthcare into a tool for electoral favors instead of a public service.”
Labor conditions within the health sector were also raised, with HEAD accusing Herbosa of inconsistency in his public statements. The group said he publicly lauds health workers while failing to confront long-standing concerns such as contractual employment, excessive working hours, and staff shortages. It further cited his unresolved cases before the Office of the Ombudsman as part of what it described as “acts that point to systemic corruption tolerated and enabled at the highest level.”
