MANILA, Philippines — Manila Mayor Honey Lacuna-Pangan revealed she was offered by the Marcos administration to lead the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) as its president.
Lacuna-Pangan said in an interview with radio journalist Anthony Taberna on his YouTube channel that Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa asked if she would be interested in leading PhilHealth.
“Secretary Herbosa offered it in passing. I replied that it isn’t my forte. I won’t leave my post as mayor,” she said in Filipino.
Taberna said President Marcos also recommended Lacuna-Pangan for the PhilHealth top post.
But the mayor said she politely declined.
Lacuna-Pangan is a general practitioner specializing in dermatology and a fellow of the Philippine Dermatological Society.
She is running for reelection as Manila mayor, competing against former Manila mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso, party-list representative Sam Verzosa, actor Raymond Bagatsing and several others.
If elected, it would be her second three-year term.
Edwin Mercado, an orthopedic surgeon and hospital management expert, took over as president and chief executive officer of PhilHealth last month.
He replaced banking executive Emmanuel Ledesma who allegedly resigned amid public criticisms in the removal of government subsidy for PhilHealth in the 2025 national budget.
