THE Supreme Court's decision to issue a temporary restraining order (TRO) on the further transfer of funds from the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) to the National Treasury is a welcome development, as it immediately stops the government from siphoning off P89.9 billion that should go to meeting the medical expenses of the fund's members.

The TRO was issued in response to three consolidated petitions challenging the government's reallocation of excess reserve funds from government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCCs) to support unprogrammed appropriations in the national budget.