MANILA, Philippines – The Supreme Court (SC) affirmed the Commission on Audit (COA) ruling disallowing the grant of P15.2 million worth of unauthorized benefits to employees of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth).

“Good faith is no longer a defense for recipients of subsequently disallowed public benefits or allowances,” the SC said in a press release on Tuesday, February 28.

The supposed benefits or various notice of disallowance were first received by PhilHealth Region IV-A office covering the transportation allowance, project completion incentive, and educational assistance allowance paid to regular and contractual employees for 2009 and 2010.

The SC said that the transportation allowance and project completion incentive were
“considered irregular expenditures since job order employees are not entitled to the benefits enjoyed by government employees, as stated under COA Circular No. 85-55A.”

“The disallowed educational assistance allowance given to regular employees, on the other hand, was in violation of the 2009 and 2010 General Appropriation Acts,” the court added.

In upholding the COA decision, the SC ruled that the fiscal autonomy enjoyed by PhilHealth was “not absolute and cannot be the sole basis for the grant of benefits or allowances.”

The decision, penned by Associate Justice Rodil Zalameda, was promulgated on September 27, 2022 but made public only Tuesday.

Read the full SC decision here. – Rappler.com