Francisco Duque III

On March 19, 2020, Secretary Duque underwent home quarantine after one of its officials was infected with COVID-19. He was tested for COVID-19 because he is asthmatic and hypertensive, according to a text message by Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire. Three days later, on March 22, 2020, the results tested negative.

In a press briefing held on April 9, 2020, Secretary Duque noted that the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the Philippines is relatively “low” compared to other countries, despite limited testing. Duque's statements ran contrary to those earlier released by the Department of Health (DOH). His special assistant, Beverly Ho, earlier said in a virtual press briefing that the impact of the ECQ would only be learned by mid-April as it was too early to tell whether it had a role in curbing the spread of the coronavirus. Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire also said that, before the “true picture” of the COVID-19 pandemic could be determined, the testing capacity of the country must first stabilize —meaning it must be able to conduct 8,000 to 10,000 COVID-19 tests a day.

In response to Secretary Duque's lack of leadership and transparency, at least 15 senators filed Senate Resolution No. 362 on April 16, 2020, to revoke his position. On the other hand, the health secretary urged the League of Provinces of the Philippines to rally the governors to the war against COVID-19 and in establishing a “new normal” afterward. He said the 5-point strategy of the DOH is to: 1) Increase resilience, 2) Stop Transmission, 3) Reduce Contact Rate, 4) Shorten Duration of Infectiousness, and 5) Enhance Quality, Consistency, and Affordability of Care Provision.

On July 29, 2019, in his privilege speech, Senator Panfilo Lacson accused Duque of an alleged conflict of interest as Secretary of the Department of Health. Lacson claimed that the companies of Duque's siblings, Doctors’ Pharmaceutical (DPI) and Educational and Medical Development Corporation (EMDC), continued to have contracts with government agencies despite Duque taking positions in government. According to Lacson, DPI continued to earn millions of pesos from the government through the lease of an EMDC building for the use of the Philippine Health Corporation Regional Office 1 in Dagupan City.

During a hearing of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee on August 14, 2019, Duque denied any conflict of interest in his part. Duque emphasized that DPI has been partnering with the government since 1946 and was already a primary provider of anti-TB vaccines by 1996, the first time he acquired shares from the company. Also, according to Duque, he has already divested all personal interests with DPI since 2005. As such, there can be no conflict of interest under RA 6713 because Duque has no personal interest in the company.

Duque was appointed Chairman of the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) by President Rodrigo Roa Duterte in 2017. As chairman, he began laying the groundwork for various reforms to strengthen the government corporation. However, barely one year after his appointment to GSIS, President Duterte appointed Duque as DOH Secretary once more. Upon his assumption of office as DOH Secretary on November 6, 2017, he became the first returning health chief of the agency since the reappointment of Health Secretary Paulino Garcia in the 1960s.

Duque moved for the historic passage of two major pieces of legislation – the Universally Accessible, Affordable Quality Medicine Act of 2008 and the Food and Drug Administration Law of 2009.

In EMDC's case, Duque reiterated that the lease of the EMDC property was advantageous to the government because it allowed the Philhealth Region I Office to move out of a building that was declared a fire hazard. Also, the lease went to the proper procurement process and the directive of leasing office space is managed by the Regional Vice President of PhilHealth, and not the Board in which he was an ex-officio member. Duque also informed then PhilHealth CEO Alex Padilla in 2013 about his shares and was not ordered to divest, thus implying that there was no conflict of interest.

Under Duque's Chairmanship, the CSC was conferred the "Governance Trailblazer Seal" after it achieved the highest compliance rating of 9.03 at the Performance Governance System (PGS) Revalida on October 14, 2011. Under his chairmanship, the CSC got the highest rating, with 98 percent of clients saying they were satisfied with the services they received from the CSC based on a Pulse Asia survey which covered the period October 24 to November 17, 2011.

On January 11, 2010, Duque was appointed as the Chairman of the Civil Service Commission (CSC). By March 9, 2010, Chairman Duque was named Vice-Chairman of the Career Executive Service Board (CESB). During his time as CSC Chairman, Duque was pivotal in developing the CSC Roadmap for Development and Reforms for 2010–15, a five-year blueprint that details the priority programs of CSC for the country's 1.4 million civil servants. Duque's other landmark programs included the Strategic Performance Management System (SPMS), Botika Para sa Taumbayan, Contact Center ng Bayan, and the CSC Computerized Examination System or COMEX.

On June 1, 2005, President Arroyo appointed Duque as Secretary of the Department of Health because of his efficient leadership at the helm of PhilHealth. As DOH Secretary, the agency achieved many impressive breakthroughs and milestones regarding public health care that helped DOH earn high approval ratings. During his tenure, the World Health Organization (WHO) cited the Philippines for being one of only three nations that had excellent risk communication strategies against the deadly AH1N1 virus. His five-year stewardship of the DOH was also marked by quick and stable response efforts against various health emergencies and disasters such as the Guimaras oil spill (2005), the Leyte Guinsaugon landslide (2006), St. Andrew's School mercury spill (2006), melamine-laced milk products (2008), Typhoon Ondoy (2009) and the Ebola Reston in pigs (2009). Duque also served concurrently as the Anti-Hunger Czar via his role as Chair of the National Nutrition Council (NNC), tasked by the President to oversee the implementation of the hunger mitigation programs of 27 government agencies. He was also appointed Presidential Oversight Chair of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO).

In June 2001, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo appointed Duque as President & CEO of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth). As President of PhilHealth, he initiated and directed PhilHealth's Plan 500/GMA Indigent Program which fast tracked the enrollment of 500,000 urban poor beneficiaries into the National Health Insurance Plan (NHIP) in one (1) year. By 2003, indigent enrollment from the NHIP initiative totalled 8 million beneficiaries. President Arroyo presented PhilHealth as a showcase of her administration's successes through the successful enrollment of 5.9 million families or 29,901,890 beneficiaries in the NHIP by 2004.

From 1989 to 1995, Duque served as the Dean of the College of Medicine of Lyceum-Northwestern University. He also was Director of the University of Pangasinan at the same time (1989–1999). Duque then became the Administrator of the Lyceum-Northwestern University General Hospital the following year and became its Executive Vice-President the same time. He eventually stepped down from those positions in 2000.

Duque earned his high school diploma from Lourdes School of Quezon City in 1974 and his bachelor's degree in zoology from the University of Santo Tomas (UST) in 1978. He then obtained his Doctor of Medicine degree from the UST Faculty of Medicine and Surgery in 1982. Duque continued his education in the United States, where he earned his Master of Science degree in pathology from Georgetown University in 1987. It was at Georgetown where he underwent scientific training in immunology from 1985 to 1988. In 1992, Duque finished a post-graduate course on executive education on Health Program Management at the Harvard University School of Public Health and Graduate School of Management in Boston, United States.

Francisco Tiongson Duque III (Tagalog: [fɾɐnˈsisko ˈdukɛ] ; born February 13, 1957) is a Filipino physician and government official currently serving as the Secretary of Health since 2017 in the Cabinet of President Rodrigo Duterte. He also previously served as Secretary of Health from 2005 to 2010 under the administration of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. From 2010 to 2015, he served as the Chairman of the Civil Service Commission.