SAN JOSE CITY, Nueva Ecija — Senator Jose Victor Ejercito on Saturday expressed hope that the universal health care (UHC) bill he authored will fare well after the State of the Nation Address (SONA) of President Rodrigo Duterte.
Speaking before hundreds of barangay health workers here Saturday, Ejercito said the emphasis made by the Chief Executive on universal health law shows the government’s resolve to make health services “accessible to all Filipinos.”
This, as the senator pressed for pooling of government’s health funds to finance the implementation of a universal health program once the bill is passed.
Among the fund sources that the bill intends to pool include the current allocation from the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Pagcor), PHP27 billion; Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO), PHP8 billion; tobacco tax, PHP104 billion; and alcohol tax, PHP118 billion.
Overall, the pooled fund would be PHP257 billion, but is still short from the PHP305 billion requirement of the proposed legislation.
Ejercito, however, believed that the bill’s passage got a big boost after Duterte mentioned it in his last SONA.
“Batay sa pag-aaral, apat sa bawat sampung Filipino ang namamatay nang hindi nakakakita ng duktor (Based on studies, four out of 10 Filipinos die without seeing a doctor),” he said.
The UHC, bannered by the “Universal Health Care for All Filipinos Act” or Senate Bill No. 1458, was filed by Ejercito, chair of the Senate Committee on Health and Demography.
The bill, he said, aims to make the national health coverage 100 percent from the current 80 to 90 percent.
The passage of the bill, he added, will also cushion the impact of inflation which breached 5.7 percent mark last month.
Ejercito met village health workers and motorcycle riders here as part of “city day” celebration, according to Mayor Mario Salvador. (Marilyn Galang/PNA)
