Recto, others face plunder complaint over PhilHealth fund transfer

MANILA, Philippines – Executive Secretary Ralph Recto and several other officials have been slapped with a plunder and technical malversation complaint before the Office of the Ombudsman over the diversion of P60 billion from the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth).

Health advocate Tony Leachon filed the complaint on Monday, May 25, saying that the recommended charges “expose both criminal enrichment and reckless misuse of public funds.”

Other respondents listed in the complaint were Acting Finance Secretary Frederick Go, former acting budget secretary Rolando Toledo, PhilHealth president and chief executive officer Edwin Mercado, former PhilHealth chief Emmanuel Ledesma, Health Secretary Ted Herbosa, PDIC president and CEO Roberto Tan, and “John/Jane Does” involved in the transactions.

“Filing these charges is a duty to the Filipino people — to restore integrity, deter future abuses, and reclaim the promise of universal health care,” read part of Leachon’s statement. 

Leachon accused Recto of “[violating] the Constitution and [betraying] the people’s right to health” when he ordered the transfer of P89.9 billion in “excess funds” from the state insurer to the national treasury in 2024.

At the time, Recto was finance secretary. He cited the “special provision” of the 2024 national budget that allows the government to collect excess funds from government-owned and -controlled corporations like PhilHealth in order to fund unprogrammed appropriations.

Only P60 billion was remitted after the Supreme Court (SC) blocked the remittance of the last tranche through a temporary restraining order.

In December 2025, the SC ruled that the “special provision” was unconstitutional, and that the P60 billion should be returned to PhilHealth through the 2026 national budget.

“The so-called ‘restoration’ of P60 billion in 2026 was a hollow gesture — too late for the families already buried in debt, too late for the patients who never received care,” Leachon said.

“The P60 billion could have saved lives, kept hospitals afloat, and brought dignity to families in despair. Instead, it was stolen from the sick and the poor,” he said.

Leachon also questioned the transfer of P107 billion in funds of the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation (PDIC) in his complaint.

“The diversion of P60 billion from PhilHealth and P107 billion from PDIC meets the threshold of ill-gotten wealth. Recto’s orchestration and defense of these transfers reveal intent and culpability,” the health advocate alleged.

“Even without proof of personal enrichment, the misuse of earmarked health and insurance funds for unauthorized purposes constitutes technical malversation,” he added.

Recto responds

In a statement, Recto said the complaint was “nothing but a nuisance and a harassment case,” especially that the funds have been returned to PhilHealth.

“The Supreme Court justices themselves said that I have no criminal liability because I ‘simply followed the law and implemented it in good faith,’” he said.

Recto also said the claim that he allegedly financially benefited from the P60 billion was “an outright falsehood.”

“An elementary understanding of public expenditure would lead one to conclude that I was not and never in a position to have been able to touch a single centavo of it,” he said.

“His claim that I have enriched myself has no iota of truth, and I will not allow a person who has waged a campaign of hate against me get away with slander,” he added. – Rappler.com