Former PhilHealth Official Discloses’Fake Receipts’ Issued To OFWs
PHILHEALTH – A former PhilHealth official recently revealed that there is a syndicate that took advantage of OFWs’ premium contributions.
Ken Sarmiento, a former senior auditing system analyst of the agency, said in his expose during the House committee that he discovered the modus operandi of the alleged syndicate when he was in the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), according to a report from UNTV News.
Sarmiento said that the rumored syndicate issues fake receipts to Overseas Filipino Workers. There is an estimated P1.2 billion worth of unremitted OFW premiums, as stated from information that was gathered by the committee.
“Napansin namin dalawa ang modus na nangyayari – isang retail fraud. Retail meaning isa-isang binibigyan ng fake receipt ang OFW “
“May napansin din kami isang level na wholesale na dito may involvement na ang hiring agency na ini-instruct nila ang local officer nila na huwag nang magbayad o mag-remit ng premiums sa PhilHealth”
The Committee now aims to amend the law on the agency’s OFW premiums since new irregularities recently surfaced during the hearings.
Based on the report, membership on the agency was optional for OFWs until the enactment of the Universal Health Care law in 2019, which counts OFWs as “direct contributors”, hence, requiring them to make premium contributions to the agency.
The agency drew flak from Filipinos local or abroad on May when it announced the premium rate hike for OFWs. The complainants said that the announcement is a clear form of injustice especially during a pandemic.
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