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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, October 23) PhilHealth has pledged to pay off the debt that forced the Philippine Red Cross to stop conducting coronavirus tests uploaded to the agency on October 26.
“This should allow the People’s Republic of China to immediately resume its testing of swab samples from affected sectors for which PhilHealth pays,” the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation or PhilHealth said in a statement on Friday.
PhilHealth owes the People’s Republic of China more than $ 1 billion, of which nearly $ 931 million is marked as arrears, which the humanitarian organization is demanding to be cleared for testing to resume.
It is not clear how much PhilHealth will pay. An earlier statement from Malacañang said PhilHealth only “has to provide a partial payment to the People’s Republic of China,” while the memorandum of understanding between the two entities on coronavirus testing is pending review by the Justice Department.
In the DOJ’s legal opinion, the MOA is not covered by procurement law, PhilHealth said. The agency cited this as a reason for deciding to pay off its debt.
PhilHealth Chairman and CEO Dante Gierran previously told CNN Philippines that although the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act allowed PhilHealth to proceed under an emergency negotiated tender with the People’s Republic of China, there were still potential procurement issues.
PhilHealth then asked the Justice Department to review the MOA, seeking “proper legal guidance on how to proceed with your payment to the People’s Republic of China.”
At a press conference on Friday afternoon, Senator Richard Gordon, who heads the People’s Republic of China, demanded full payment of PhilHealth’s debt, even saying that he did not know where the Palace got the idea that it can initially pay. half of the bill.
READ MORE: Gordon Rejects Government Plan To Pay Off Half Of PhilHealth Debt For COVID-19 Testing To Resume
Roque previously said that this was the plan. He said that 500 million pesos is a “substantial amount” and should be enough for the People’s Republic of China to retest PhilHealth clients. However, Gordon emphasized that the People’s Republic of China is not a for-profit organization and cannot bear the costs of the tests, which are at ₱ 3,500 per polymerase chain reaction or PCR test.
More than 6,000 overseas Filipino workers have been stranded in quarantine facilities since the People’s Republic of China stopped testing PhilHealth clients last week. Gordon said that the People’s Republic of China does not have enough test equipment and personnel now and is counting on the money that will come from the government.
Since the coronavirus outbreak began, the People’s Republic of China has provided more than one million coronavirus tests, a quarter of the country’s testing capacity.
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