Senate Deputy Majority Leader JV Ejercito said Sunday it is time to activate the Oversight Committee to recommend amendments to the Universal Health Care Law, three years after it was signed by former President Rodrigo Duterte.

In an interview with dzBB, Ejercito said the Oversight Committee should look into the controversies linked to the Philippine Health Insurance Corp (PhilHealth).

“We need to activate the Oversight Committee so that the funds from PhilHealth will reach beneficiaries, the poorest of the poor, the non-contributory members…The past investigations about scams and scandals, like the cataract scams, are still happening today. We need to monitor that to make sure that Philhealth remains healthy. The agency itself needs an overhaul to stop this modus operandi because billions of money are wasted when instead they should be given to those who need it most,” Ejercito said.

“ I have filed amendments. Of course, you’ll only see the needed adjustments or flaws once it’s implemented. If there are necessary adjustments, the Oversight Committee will be the one to recommend them. The law is ripe for amendments three years after the passage of the Universal Health Care Act, he added.

Republic Act 11223 or the Universal Health Care Act aims to give all Filipinos access to quality and affordable health care goods and services, as well as protection from financial risk.

He said the Senate will also place safeguards in a bill seeking to make the Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) mandatory.

“Definitely, we will put the safeguards and mechanisms to make sure that abuses and corruption that happened before won’t happen again. Of course, past experiences will help us draft a better bill…We will make sure that proper training, discipline, and respect for authority will really be the intention of the ROTC,” Ejercito said.

Ejercito said there is a big chance that the mandatory ROTC bill will be passed '' because many of them are in favor of this.” Jaspearl Tan/DMS