With 22 affirmative votes, the Senate has approved on third and final reading the Medical Scholarship Bill or Doktor Para sa Bayan Act for aspiring physicians who cannot afford medical school.
Senate Bill 1520 provides that the government shall shoulder the tuition fee and other expenses for books, uniforms, and allowances of qualified beneficiaries. The scholarship is accompanied by a return service obligation where beneficiaries who would graduate under the program shall serve in government hospitals.
The duration of return service will be equivalent to the period of their scholarship. “Mula’t mula ay nanindigan akong hindi balakid ang kahirapan o kawalan ng sapat na pera para maabot ng ating mga kabataan ang kanilang mga pangarap (I have always stood by the belief that poverty or lack of money is not a hindrance for our youth to reach their dreams),” Senate President Vicente Sotto III said.
“My vision for this measure, which is now called the ‘Doktor para sa Bayan’ Act, is to help financially-challenged but deserving students to pursue their dreams of becoming medical doctors to serve our country and our countrymen,” Sotto added. – Report from Eunice Samonte
