A CONGRESSMAN on Thursday urged the House of Representatives to investigate the alleged P18.7 billion worth of wasted medical supplies and medicines by the Health department.
In a statement, Party-list Rep. Eduardo J. Villanueva, Jr. said he filed House Resolution (HR) No. 2127 in December last year to look into the P85 million, P7.43 billion, and P11.18 billion worth of “expired, nearly-expired, damaged, overstocked, or undistributed” medicines and medical supplies under the Health department, according to audit reports in 2021, 2022, and 2023, respectively.
“The increasing trend of unutilized medical supplies in recent years is very alarming and still haunts us. While millions of Filipinos struggle to access affordable medicines and healthcare, billions in public funds are being wasted due to inefficiencies,” he said.
“With limited fiscal space, we cannot afford to waste even a single peso,” he added. — Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio
