Red tape delaying hospital projects – Deputy Speaker Garin

MANILA, Philippines — Bureaucratic delays at the Department of Health (DOH) slow down the implementation of hospital projects, with repeated approvals and paperwork preventing billions of pesos from reaching health facilities, Deputy Speaker Janette Garin said on Saturday.

The Health Facilities Enhancement Program (HFEP) had used only 11% of its funds during the period examined in congressional budget hearings, Garin, a former secretary of the Department of Health (DOH), pointed out.

“During the budget hearing from September to October, the DOH showed clearly that the utilization of the HFEP was only at 11 percent last quarter,” she said in Filipino during the “Saturday News Forum” at Dapo Restaurant in Quezon City.

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She said billions more from 2025 remained unused because project documents had to pass through several levels of approval.

“Papers keep going back and forth,” she said, noting that they would be sent through the local government unit to the regional office and back down again.

“In other words, it’s the system that has a problem because the bureaucracy prohibits the immediate implementation of programs,” she said.

Garin said these delays helped explain why the House reduced the proposed 2027 HFEP allocation by about P4.45 billion and redirected funds to medical assistance.

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She said the problem was not simply a lack of money but the government’s inability to implement projects quickly.

“The secretary of health has already been advised of that [problem. They promised to find a solution,” she said.

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“We are still awaiting the simplified guidelines so that the papers won’t be ping-ponged,” she added.

READ: House minority lawmakers seek probe into DOH’s HFEP

Garin said simplifying DOH procedures would allow more hospital projects to proceed and could justify higher health infrastructure allocations in succeeding years.

“Though we admit so many things have to be changed at the Department of Health. It will take a little time,” she said.

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She expressed hope that reforms could be completed in 2027, paving the way for a larger health budget in 2028. /atm