Coconut Block

Ramdam thoughts from a ramdam mind.

[Sonny Trillanes IV @TrillanesSonny]

Ito yung political ad na nilabas namin nung 2016 campaign pero hinarang ng kampo ni duterte. Ngayon, alam nyo na ang epekto ng isang violent environment sa mga bata.

[Coconut Block @coconut_block]

@carlos_pse Did you cut your losses already?

[Jo ⚓ @iamjogarzola]

ang ingay ni Robin sa mga gantong issue no? Kapag kabataan gusto agad ikulong pero pag si Bato papatakasin?

[Coconut Block @coconut_block]

@_xrnji Dati, d ko namalayan nabutas na pala sapatos ko kakalakad.

[Coconut Block @coconut_block]

If you're an officer or a member of a cooperative, please join the 6th National Summit on Gender and Development (GAD) in Cooperatives this August 3-5, 2026 at Camp John Hay. Avail of the early bird rate until June 30, 2026. Please see details below. Thank you!

[Tim Cone @manilacone]

What Alex Eala is doing internationally is big news, but still not being glorified enough back here at home. What she is doing on the biggest stages is incredible. Every person in the country should be talking about her. Amazing!!! Go Alex!

[Coconut Block @coconut_block]

Not my birthday yet, but my only wish now is to get well soon. Lord, five months na. Nakakapagod na.

[Coconut Block @coconut_block]

@johnat143 Salbahe

[PING LACSON @iampinglacson]

THE PHILIPPINE SENATE in 28 days under Alan Peter Cayetano:

Estimated Cost - P700M. Output - chaos, gunfire, Bato’s escape despite ICC-issued warrant while under its “protective custody”, session boycott, failed destabilization attempt, unauthorized committee hearings highlighted by one not presided nor attended by a single senator.

WHAT A WASTE OF TAXPAYERS’ MONEY!

[Jay Tarriela @jaytaryela]

Yesterday, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, together with the Philippine Coast Guard, conducted a routine Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA) flight and documented the Chinese Research Vessel YUE ZHAN YU KE 6 dismantling the floating platform and loading it onto her stern. Throughout the flight, the aircraft consistently challenged the vessel’s illegal Marine Scientific Research (MSR) activities.

Today, the Philippine Coast Guard once again conducted an MDA flight using its PCG Cessna Caravan aircraft. It was noted that the platform is no longer present in the shoal, and the Chinese Research Vessel YUE ZHAN YU KE 6 — which towed the platform last Monday and loaded its dismantled components yesterday — is no longer in the vicinity of Bajo de Masinloc. Remaining inside the shoal was the other, smaller research vessel, YUE XIA YU ZHI 20028.

[Coconut Block @coconut_block]

@jclem3 Binili na rin nila yung factory ng maleta.

[Coconut Block @coconut_block]

@goodaureads We use Hapee toothpaste. Let's support local!

[Coconut Block @coconut_block]

@carmimartin8 Buong cast magaling!

[Coconut Block @coconut_block]

@carmimartin8 Ms Carmi! Ang galing galing nyo sa My Bespren Emman! 👏 👏 👏 . Sana maraming manood nito at magkaron ng maraming ads. Mga ganitong programs ang dapat sinusuportahan.

#MyBesprenEmman

[Coconut Block @coconut_block]

@1982_girlcuddly @xxirxxnoy You can also watch it at TV5.

[Coconut Block @coconut_block]

@anthropam PSBank and BDO

[radar PH @radarph_media]

PhilHealth is omnipresent in every Filipino’s payslip, taking money whether workers like it or not. Yet in moments of greatest need, it often feels absent.

That’s what happened in the viral case of Maria Lourdes Sulit. Her husband Marvin contributed for over 25 years. When he died of a brain hematoma, PhilHealth declined to cover their nearly ₱200,000 hospital bill.

The reason: a technicality. He was confined for less than 24 hours. Under PhilHealth Circular No. 2020-0007, inpatient benefits require a 24-hour stay. But Circular No. 2025-0020 allows outpatient emergency benefits in cases ending in death within 24 hours. So which is it, then?

Sulit’s case is yet another crack in a system already under strain.

PhilHealth is mandatory under the Universal Health Care Law. Every Filipino is automatically enrolled, meaning every worker is required to contribute—regardless of income, preference, or private coverage.

And that has long been a point of frustration. Ask any tito, tita, tropa, or kakilala, and a familiar story emerges: PhilHealth often covers only a fraction of the bill. Families still shoulder significant out-of-pocket expenses.

Then come the administrative failures: the delays, the waiting, the stress on top of the hospitalization stresses.

Private health maintenance organizations help fill some of the gap. But even they can only do so much, often still leaving families exposed to catastrophic expenses that the public system is supposed to cushion.

And then, there’s the issue that refuses to go away: corruption.

PhilHealth has been repeatedly drawn into controversies involving anomalous claims, questionable reimbursements, and fund management issues that have reached Congress and the courts.

The latest one involved around ₱60 billion in excess funds—transferred to the national treasury. The Supreme Court later ruled that it’s unconstitutional, questioning whether health funds were being redirected away from their intended purpose.

The money has since been restored to PhilHealth, but its image isn’t getting any better. To many, it remains an agency that collects mandatory contributions, yet Filipinos don't get what they pay for.

Calls to abolish PhilHealth continue to surface. Let Filipinos keep their money. Rely on private insurance or personal means instead.

It’s understandable—especially in cases like Sulit’s—but abolition without replacement risks dismantling the country’s only nationwide health risk pool.

For all its flaws, PhilHealth remains the only attempt at universal coverage at scale. Removing it wouldn’t erase the need for protection.

So the real issue is not just whether to abolish PhilHealth, but what must replace or radically reform it.

Our Asian neighbors have made clearer choices. Thailand funds universal healthcare through general taxation, allowing patients to access care with minimal or no out-of-pocket costs. Malaysia heavily subsidizes public hospitals, keeping treatment affordable and predictable. South Korea operates a hybrid system where mandatory contributions are matched with reliable, structured coverage at the point of care.

The Philippines remains stuck in between: compulsory contributions without guaranteed protection, universal enrollment without universal certainty.

Now, the question is no longer whether PhilHealth should exist. Can it continue in its current form when the gap between contribution and protection remains this wide?

Can Filipinos still afford to pay premiums to a system they cannot rely on in a life-and-death situation?

Otherwise, PhilHealth only gives Filipinos hell.

[Furkan Gözükara @FurkanGozukara]

🚨 WTF?! Al Jazeera confirms 77,000 Japanese citizens were found dead alone in their homes last year, some undiscovered for months!

The crisis is so catastrophic that a yogurt delivery company is now the frontline survival network to check if the elderly have collapsed!

[Coconut Block @coconut_block]

@hannaaahty Congratulations!

[Lynda Jumilla-Abalos @lyndajumilla]

Global tech group exec told ph businessmen they paused project here “because of goings-on” in the senate.
Regional tech firm exec told ph businessmen “foreign investors won’t come if there’s instability in government” after events in senate.

See what you’ve done, alan peter?