MANILA – A group of Health Department employees filed complaints on Tuesday before the Office of the Ombudsman against Health Secretary Ted Herbosa and 16 other DOH officials, citing alleged graft, grave misconduct, and conduct prejudicial to the service.

The complaints center on an alleged P68 million worth of reproductive health (RH) and mental health medicines that expired between December 2025 and March 2026, as well as P1.3 billion worth of undelivered vaccines, including BCG for tuberculosis and MMR for measles, with expiry dates from March to December 2026.

The complainants, identifying themselves only as Concerned DOH Employees, alleged that top officials were formally warned of the impending losses. “Undersecretary Randy Escolango and OIC-Director David Masiado were served an Executive Briefer on March 9, 2026 regarding the overstocking and impending expiry,” the complaint read.

Despite these warnings, the complainants claim that no emergency distribution of the medicines was authorized. Instead, they allege that a Department Personnel Order (DPO) was rushed to form a Disposal Committee aimed at liquidating the stock and preventing media scrutiny.

“This rush was not for efficiency, but to destroy the physical evidence of the P68-million loss before it could be scrutinized,” the complaint said, citing internal communications from Herbosa’s office. One message reportedly read, “Pag ito nalaman ng media, patay na naman” (If this comes out in the media, we are all done for).

The complainants said the actions of the respondents demonstrated “conscious indifference to the public’s right to health” and amounted to “a disposition to protect political image over the service of the populace.” They claimed the alleged conduct “constitutes an act highly prejudicial to the efficient and honest operation of the government.”

Aside from Secretary Herbosa, the other respondents named in the complaint include:

• DOH Undersecretary Randy Escolango
• DOH Assistant Secretary Gloria Balboa
• David Masiado, OIC-Director, High Burden Infectious Diseases Prevention and Control Division
• Dr. Anna Marie Celina Garfin, Director IV
• Dr. Adriano Suba-an, Director IV, Population Health and Non-Communicable Diseases
• Dr. Cherylle Gavino, Director III, Mental Health Division
• Dr. Maria Joyce Ducusin, Division Chief, Children’s Health and Development Division
• Dr. Hardy Dumawing, Program Manager, Family Planning
• Dr. Carmela Granada, Division Chief, Mental Health Division
• Dr. Jan Derek Junio, Program Manager, National HIV/AIDS and STI Prevention and Control Program
• Dr. Carmina Paz Vera, Program Manager, National Immunization Program
• Dr. Jessa Joy Malipot, Technical Officer for Procurement Management, Mental Health Division
• Mark Anthony Dizon, Technical Officer for Procurement Management, Mental Health Division
• Liezl Fernandez, Technical Staff for Budget and Procurement, Other Infectious Diseases Prevention, Control, and Elimination Division
• Mary Grace Bautista, Management and Administrative Support Unit
• Jennifer Rabino, Management and Administrative Support Unit

The filing comes amid growing public scrutiny over the government’s handling of medicines and vaccine distribution, raising questions about accountability and oversight in the Department of Health.