The Department of Health (DOH) expressed appreciation for President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s move to certify as urgent Senate Bill No. 1869, also known as the Center for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) bill.
Creating a local CDC will further strengthen the country’s capability to address public health emergencies, making for effective disease prevention and control.
Furthermore, this also aims to strategically improve epidemiological and public health surveillance, scale up information systems capacity, and strengthen the role and capacity of public health laboratories to ensure rapid response where and when public health threats arise.
The CDC Bill, certified as urgent, is the Senate Bill version of House Bill No. 6522 or the “Philippine Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) Act”, which was already approved by the House of Representatives on the third and final reading last December 2022.
“Lubos po ang pasasalamat ng Kagawaran ng Kalusugan sa ating Pangulong Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. at sa ating mga butihing mambabatas sa Senado at Kongreso sa pagbibigay suporta sa pagkakatatag ng ating sariling Center for Disease Control.”
“Lubos po ang pasasalamat ng Kagawaran ng Kalusugan sa ating Pangulong Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. at sa ating mga butihing mambabatas sa Senado at Kongreso sa pagbibigay suporta sa pagkakatatag ng ating sariling Center for Disease Control,” DOH Officer-in-Charge Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said.
“Kung mayroon man tayong natutunan sa pandemyang ito, iyon ay ang patuloy nating paglinang sa evidence-based public health at clinical care standards na siyang mapapabuti ng pagkakaroon ng sarili nating CDC,” Vergeire added.
The Health Department OIC also emphasized that with CDC, all systems that are essential to ensure a proactive health response in normal and emergency situations will be strengthened and institutionalized.
The CDC shall be the technical authority on forecasting, analysis, strategy, and standards development for the prevention and control of communicable and non-communicable diseases and health security events, whether domestic or international.
