MANILA - Philippine Red Cross chief Sen. Richard Gordon said Sunday it should be PhilHealth that should be investigated for its debt to the non-government organization for the COVID-19 tests it has conducted.

The PRC earlier announced it would halt PhilHealth-funded coronavirus testing due to the state insurer's P1 billion outstanding bill as of Friday.

• Philippine Red Cross to stop PhilHealth-funded COVID-19 tests due to P930-M gov't debt

PhilHealth apologized for the delay in payment, saying it was partly due to the review being conducted amid the corruption probe on the state insurer.

• PhilHealth promises to settle P930-M debt with Red Cross

Gordon on Sunday warned PhilHealth officials against speaking ill of the NGO amid a supposed investigation by the state insurer.

• Ex-PhilHealth official still wants Gordon probed over Red Cross-PhilHealth deal

"Nakakapundi talaga yung sasabihin, meron kaming sinisiyasat. Kami ba may kasalanan o kayo? Kayo ang lumapit, di naman kami," Gordon said on ABS-CBN's TeleRadyo.

(It irks me when they say they are investigating something. Is it our fault or yours? You're the one who approached us.)

"Dapat sila imbestigahin ba't di nila binabayaran. Ayoko sanang pumasok, marami akong nalalaman dyan. Ayoko lang sabihin na pinepuwersa natin sila. Pero meron akong mga dokumentong na hawak na nag-overprice sila dun sa tinatawag natin test kits."

(They should be the ones investigated for not paying the PRC. I don't want to get involved because I know many things. I don't want it to seem like we're forcing them. But I have documents showing they had overpriced test kits.)

Gordon urged PhilHealth officials to file cases against PRC should they find any violations.

"Merong dalawang direktor ata dyan - didiretsuhin ko na - kung galit kayo at meron kayong kaso, i-file ninyo at 'wag niyo pahirapan ang taumbayan. Kung may kasalanan kami, sabihin ninyo. Hindi yung naghahaka-haka kayo," he said.

(There are 2 directors there. If you're angry and you have complaints, file them and don't let the public suffer. If we committed any offense, let us know. Don't make assumptions.)

"Ayoko sana magsalita nang ganito. Pero, kagabi, nung narinig ko, sabi kesyo tatanungin namin sa DBM (Department of Budget and Management), 'di naman DBM nakipagkontrata sa'min. Ang nakipagkontrata sa'min, PhilHealth."

(I don't want to speak like this. But last night, I heard they were going to ask DBM. But DBM did not enter into an agreement with us. PhilHealth did.)

Over 1 million coronavirus tests, or about a fourth of the Philippines' 3.8 million tests so far, were done by PRC.

• Big labs take on more COVID-19 testing amid Red Cross halt over unpaid PhilHealth dues
• Palace says sorry for PhilHealth debt as Red Cross halts COVID-19 tests under state insurer

The country’s cumulative COVID-19 cases swelled to 354,338 on Saturday, of which, 52,423 are active infections.

More than a hundred testing laboratories, including some of the PRC's, have been granted accreditation by the government to conduct screening for COVID-19.

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