The national government’s subsidies to government-owned and -controlled corporations as of end-October declined by 8.48 percent, data released by the Bureau of the Treasury showed.
According to the latest cash operations report, subsidies in January to October totaled to P151.08 billion, down from the P165.07 billion recorded in the same period a year ago.
The lion’s share of the subsidies released to state-run firms, amounting to P76.06 billion, went to Philippine Health Insurance Corp (PhilHealth).
The subsidy support to PhilHealth is often allocated for the payment of health insurance premiums of indigent beneficiaries.
The National Irrigation Administration, which is responsible for irrigation development and management, is the second biggest recipient for the period with P30.21 billion.
The National Housing Authority completes the list of top three recipients for the month with P15.93 billion.
Other major recipients are the National Food Authority with P7 billion and Philippine Crop Insurance Corp. with P3.99 billion.
In October alone, subsidies to state-firms amounted to P5.21 billion, 17.51 percent down from the year ago level of P6.33 billion.
NIA was the top recipient for the month with P2.4 billion while another billionaire recipient was NHA with P1.1 billion. – Angela Celis
