President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has appointed Edwin Mercado as Secretary of Health, filling the post after the previous secretary resigned for health reasons only weeks into the job. Mercado had been serving as head of the state health insurer.
The president also named Beverly Ho as the new president of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, the agency that administers the country’s public health coverage. The two appointments reshape the leadership of the health sector.
Mercado brings a medical background and years of experience in health administration to the role. His move from the state insurer to the health department places a familiar figure at the top of the agency during a period of ongoing reforms.
The health department oversees public hospitals, disease prevention and the broader health system, a wide brief in a country with significant health needs. Stable leadership is seen as important for carrying forward existing programs.
Leadership changes at the health department and the state insurer are closely watched because they affect how services and coverage are managed. The two agencies work together on efforts to widen access to care.
Mercado was sworn in shortly after the announcement, and officials said the appointments were meant to ensure continuity in the government’s health programs.
