PR
House Ways and Means Committee Chair Joey Sarte Salceda (Albay, 2nd district), is proposing a 12.61 billion Heroes Compensation Fund for higher overtime pay, hazard pay, and family compensation for health care workers, deployed police and military forces, barangay health workers, and other frontliners who are currently serving in various capacities directly towards the country’s response to the coronavirus health emergency. Salceda is also calling for the procurement of “lifesaving” PPEs to be exempt from procurement laws, saying that the purchase of PPEs “cannot be delayed by issues of bureaucracy or procurement.”
In an aide memoire to the House leadership, Salceda said that “the private sector and the public have understood the critical need for PPEs for health care workers very clearly, donations have been made to hospital workers for their PPEs. The DOH has announced however that it is requesting hospitals to cease asking for donations, which shall instead be channeled through a more centralized DOH channel.
“The government must protect its frontliners. Cargo natin sila.”
“Hindi na pwedeng mag-insist pa tayo on bureaucratic restrictions. Tomorrow we are convening in special session precisely to defeat that mindset. Lives are literally on the line, and every time a doctor that falls ill or dies because of this disease, we are almost sure that some other patient in critical condition will die as a result of diminished medical attention.”
Salceda is also proposing a 12.61 billion peso Heroes Compensation Fund to cover:
1. Hazard pay, overtime pay, and night shift differential (at least Php 2.61 billion a month);
2. A family compensation fund (similar to the 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund in the United States following September 11 attacks) in case a health care worker or frontliner (including security forces) dies or is permanently disabled from employment as a consequence of performing their duties (proposed at Php 5 billion pesos),
3. The creation of a captive insurance company to cover the risks assumed by the Philippine Government and its employees and contractors working without private insurance coverage, in claims resulting from work done subsequent to the Covid-19 response efforts (another Php 5 billion pesos).
Salceda has also proposed that the RITM and sub national testing centers be allowed to procure on their own and with simpler requirements.
“Hindi na po ito panahon para sa elaborate national procurement plans. No one planned this situation, so kailangan po ang procurement for these hospitals, needs-based na. ‘Pag nakita mo nang kulang ang supply sa isang testing center, tapos idadaan mo pa sa national system, that insistence on bureaucratic procedure is lethal.”
“And I don’t understand this restriction on hospitals from soliciting donations. Natural, dahil kulang yung galing sa amin sa gobyerno, kung crucial na, hihingi yan sa community. And naturally, in the spirit of bayanihan, the community will answer. Why is the Central Office against this display of local support? Maghihintay pa ba dapat na i-allocate niyo ang donations? You don’t wait for commands from high above when the enemy is already staring you in the face.”
The House Ways and Means Chair has been, in recent months, closely studying response measures to address the health emergency. Salceda has proposed of a center for disease control (CDC) to prevent lockdown (January 28), a one-week quarantine of the National Capital Region (March 9), a stimulus package for Filipino families and supplemental appropriations to fight Covid-19 (March 15), the convening of a virtual session of Congress to enact key legislation (March 16), and the rationalization of checkpoints to expedite transport of goods (March 19), and a Pantawid Family Quarantine Program for those unable to earn wages due to the emergency (March 20). The national government has adopted most measures days after Salceda’s proposals were made public.
