Marcos names new PhilHealth chief

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) comes under new management as US-trained orthopedic surgeon Edwin Mercado took his oath before President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. as the new PhilHealth president and chief executive officer on Tuesday, February 4.

In a press statement on Tuesday, Malacañang described Mercado as a “US-trained orthopedic surgeon with 35 years of experience in hospital management.”

“Mercado has dedicated his work to ensuring equitable access to quality medical care and leveraging technology to strengthen health systems, particularly in financial management and primary care programs,” the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said.

Malacañang also said that as vice chairman of the Mercado General Hospital/Qualimed Health Network since March 2021, Mercado “demonstrated proven leadership and executive and strategic planning expertise.”

Mercado takes over from Emmanuel Ledesma Jr., who was PhilHealth chief since November 2022.

Health Secretary Ted Herbosa, who earlier called for a “total revamp” of the PhilHealth, welcomed the appointment of Mercado, citing the new PhilHealth chief’s credentials and track record.

“We thank outgoing PCEO Emmanuel R. Ledesma Jr. for his service, and look forward to working with new PCEO Dr. Edwin Mercado very soon,” Herbosa said.

During the 2025 PhilHealth budget deliberations last year, senators scored Ledesma for his “disrespectful” responses to lawmakers in relation to the P89.9 billion excess funds which the agency transferred to the National Treasury. The transfer is being questioned before the Supreme Court. (READ: Supreme Court issues TRO vs further transfer of PhilHealth funds)

Former Senate president Franklin Drilon also earlier joined calls to remove Ledesma, citing PhilHealth’s proposed P138-million budget for its 30th anniversary celebration in 2025, which he deemed “unconscionable, indecent, and amoral.”

Lawmakers gave PhilHealth a zero subsidy for 2025.

New PhilHealth chief’s background

The new PhilHealth chief obtained his medical degree from the  University of the Philippines in 1987 and his Master of Medical Sciences in Global Health Delivery from Harvard Medical School in 2023. He was trained at the UP College of Medicine-Philippine General Hospital, according to Herbosa.

Marcado has an Executive Master’s in Healthcare Administration from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill in the US.

PCO said that Mercado also did “advocacy work with the Zuellig Family Foundation and several DOH Centers for Health Development, providing technical assistance to Provincial Health Boards on operationalizing their Healthcare Provider Network (HCPN).”

Mercado is also a faculty lecturer at the Ateneo School of Medicine and Public Health (ASMPH) on Global Supply Chain, Research Methods, and Implementation Science; a guest lecturer at the UP College of Public Health on Medical Processes and Programs; and a fellow of the Global Health Economics and Social Change, Division of Global Health Equity, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Department of Social Medicine and Global Health of Harvard Medical School since July 2023. 

“He is studying the cost of per-member payment for global coverage of in-patient services. He is involved in an ongoing study on using Artificial Intelligence (AI) as an assistive tool for community health workers to deliver primary care,” the PCO said. – Rappler.com