Mercado in, Pujalte out as DOH undergoes another shake-up

MANILA, Philippines — After just 28 days on the job, Health Secretary Jose Brittanio “Brix” Pujalte Jr. was out of the Cabinet on Monday.

Malacañang said Pujalte had resigned for “health reasons” amid mounting complaints over his handling of a P3.225-billion tuberculosis drug procurement and allegations of casino gambling.

Palace press officer Claire Castro announced that President Marcos had accepted Pujalte’s resignation and appointed Dr. Edwin Mercado, president and CEO of the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth), as his replacement.

Dr. Beverly Lorraine Ho, chief health officer of Ayala Healthcare Holdings Inc. and a former Department of Health (DOH) assistant secretary and undersecretary, will take over as PhilHealth president and CEO.

Castro did not say whether the complaints against Pujalte had any bearing on his sudden departure, saying only that he had voluntarily resigned because of health reasons.

The announcement came less than a week after Malacañang said Marcos continued to trust Pujalte and that there was insufficient evidence to substantiate allegations in complaints filed before the Presidential Action Center and the Office of the Ombudsman.

Shortest stint

The Palace had also said it would leave to the Ombudsman the question of whether Pujalte should be placed under preventive suspension while the complaints were being investigated.

Appointed health secretary on July 13, Pujalte served only 28 days, making him the shortest-serving DOH chief in Philippine history.

He eclipsed the record of Dr. Felipe Estrella, who served 54 days as health secretary from July 1 to Aug. 23, 1998, under then President Joseph Estrada.

Pujalte’s abbreviated tenure was dogged by controversy over the suspension of the procurement of tuberculosis (TB) commodities worth P3.225 billion and allegations that he had been gambling in casinos.

Health advocates had asked the Ombudsman to suspend Pujalte and pursue a graft case against him, accusing him of deliberately stalling the bidding to give an unnamed favored supplier time to secure the contract.

They alleged that the suspension of the procurement could cause injury to public health and questioned Pujalte’s authority to put Congress-approved funds on hold.

Pujalte denied the allegations, saying the procurement needed a “careful examination” to verify the quantity, quality and safety of the medicines and ensure that it complied with government rules.

“We have not even been in this position for 30 days, but the approval of the P3-billion TB procurement is being rushed without a thorough review. That is P3 billion of the Filipino [people’s money]; it cannot be taken lightly,” he said on Aug. 6.

Pujalte said due diligence should not be misrepresented as an effort to derail the government’s tuberculosis program or deprive patients of medicines.

He also said he respected the Ombudsman’s mandate and was prepared to submit documents and records for any investigation.

Pujalte was last seen in Malacañang on Aug. 5, attending a Cabinet meeting led by Executive Secretary Ralph Recto.

Mercado takes over

His problems were compounded by a separate complaint filed in Malacañang on July 31 accusing him of frequently gambling in casinos and using the aliases “Louis Santos” and “Louiss Santos” to enter two hotel-casinos in Parañaque City.

Pujalte denied the allegations.

Mercado, a United States-trained orthopedic surgeon with 35 years of experience in hospital management, now inherits a DOH facing calls to improve access to public healthcare, strengthen preventive programs and reduce hospitalization and out-of-pocket costs.

Castro said Marcos’ marching orders to Mercado remained unchanged: prioritize the welfare and health of Filipinos.

Mercado, she said, was already familiar with the administration and knew what the President wanted to achieve.

As health secretary, Mercado will also serve as ex officio chair of the PhilHealth board, the state insurer’s highest policy-making body. —WITH A REPORT FROM INQUIRER RESEARCH

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