Camarines Sur Rep. LRay Villafuerte is calling on the Senate to consider passing after the congressional break the House-passed Magna Carta for Barangay Health Workers (BHWs) that aims to give job security to our barangay health workers (BHWs) and thereby “de-politicize” their employment in local government units (LGUs).
This way, BHWs qualified to receive a broad set of economic incentives and benefits—ranging from a P3,000 monthly allowance and hazard pay to insurance coverage and free medical plus legal services–will no longer be “at the mercy” of local chief executives who, at present, can fire them “capriciously” over their “perceived adverse political leanings,” Villafuerte, a former governor, said.
“This bill therefore aims to revise the existing law in order to recognize and improve on the realities presently at work. We must recognize that our barangay health workers and the barangay health services they help deliver at the grassroots level are keys to the country’s attainment of high and inclusive growth through sustainable human development.”
He said this proposed Magna Carta—House Bill (HB) 6557—that had been transmitted to the Senate by the bigger chamber provides for security of tenure in conferring a first-grade Civil Service Eligibility to every accredited BHW who has rendered at least five years of continuous service as a community health worker.
“With the ever increasing growth rate of our population, our BHWs are truly indispensable as basic medical frontliners in local communities,” Villafuerte said.
“They are always in the frontline of providing maternal, newborn and child health care in the neighborhood, and act as health educators and community organizers in promoting the government’s health awareness campaigns down to the smallest unit of our society: the family. Undeniably, the nature of their work is full-time.”
Despite their indispensability in community healthcare delivery, though, our BHWs are sadly treated as mere “volunteers” under Republic Act (RA) 7883, or “The Barangay Health Workers’ Benefits and Incentives Act of 1995,” who each receive about five weeks of training and meager pay, he said.
“Moreover, it is an uncontroverted fact that BHWs are at the mercy of local government officials, in the absence of their security of tenure,” said Villafuerte, who is president of the National Unity Party (NUP), which is the second biggest power bloc in the House. “They can be terminated capriciously at the instance of perceived adverse political leanings. Thus, the present system allows them to be politicized. We must put an end to this unscrupulous practice.”
For Villafuerte, “This bill therefore aims to revise the existing law in order to recognize and improve on the realities presently at work. We must recognize that our barangay health workers and the barangay health services they help deliver at the grassroots level are keys to the country’s attainment of high and inclusive growth through sustainable human development.”
HB 6557 further requires, he said, the municipal, city or provincial government to set up with the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) “a grievance mechanism to settle complaints regarding acts of discrimination against or unjust removal of BHWs from their jobs.”
This substitute bill, which was passed by the House by a 258 vote, also requires the Department of Health (DOH) to draw up and maintain a national registry of BHWs who are entitled to receive the new set of economic incentives and benefits, in recognition of their indispensable role as basic medical frontliners in our communities,” Villafuerte said.
A similar Magna Carta for BHWs was passed by the House of Representatives during the 18th Congress, but its counterpart bill was not passed by the Senate.
HB 6557 had consolidated numerous pro-BHW bills, including HB 301, which Villafuerte had authored with CamSur Reps. Miguel Luis Villafuerte and Tsuyoshi Anthony Horibata along with the Bicol Saro partylist.
Villafuerte said the House-passed HB 6557 entitles all accredited BHWs with insurance coverage and benefits from the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), the cost of which shall be shouldered by the concerned LGUs. “For this purpose, the GSIS is tasked to design an insurance benefit package suited for BHWs.”
For the accredited BHWs’ upskilling, he said the bill directs the DOH to work with the Department of Education (DepEd), Commission on Higher Education (CHED), Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) and other concerned agencies and non¬-government organizations (NGOs) on providing information and opportunities for training, education and career enrichment programs to accredited community health workers.
Villafuerte noted that BHWs live in the communities they serve, and act as change agents in these communities. “They provide information, education and motivation services for primary health care, maternal and child health, child rights, family planning and nutrition. They may administer immunizations and regular weighing of children, and they often assist midwives in providing birthing services.”
On average, he said, BHW volunteers are expected to work with around 20 families each in their respective communities. ”However the scarcity of trained individuals has narrowed down the number of volunteers, especially in some remote areas, where, at present, only one or two volunteers service an entire barangay.”
Villafuerte traced the decline in the number of BHWs in barangays to the meager compensation that they get, with their monthly allowance ranging from just P500 to P6,000 per worker, depending on the pay rates and other benefits granted by LGUs.
Given that BHWs work full-time, such compensation is hardly enough for these workers to make both ends meet for their families, he said. “It is thus high time for these community healthcare frontliners to receive more support in return for all the services they selflessly provide in their local communities.”
The proposed Magna Carta for BHWs is one of the 33 urgent bills that the House had passed from among the 42 that were identified as priority measures by the President and the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC).
President Marcos, a former Ilocos Norte governor, earlier hailed the House approval of HB 6557, saying this proposed legislation will greatly uplift the lives of BHWs. “Kami na dumaan sa local government … will never argue with the importance of the barangay health workers and for that matter all the volunteers at the barangay level at ang BHW–siyempre kayo pinakamarami. Lalo na ngayon na maraming sakuna, we know that we can always count on the BHW.”
Mr. Marcos pointed out that BHWs played a major role at the height of the coronavirus pandemic, as they provided basic medical services, conducted house-to-house visits and decided who had to be sent to hospitals and isolation facilities.
This proposed Magna Carta for BHWs is one of the 33 urgent bills that the House had passed from among the 42 that were identified as priority measures by the President and the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC).
Villafuerte had co-authored 16 bills from among the 42 priority bills identified at the Oct. 10 LEDAC meeting.
Two of these LEDAC-listed bills co-authored by Villafuerte have been signed into law: RA 11934 or the “SIM Registration Act” and RA 11935, which had reset the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE).
The DOH, in coordination with the TESDA and other concerned agencies, are required under the proposed Magna Carta to assist LGUs in developing education modules or materials for BHWs, including those promoting traditional and complementary medicine.
LGUs are also tasked to establish their own training centers for their BHWs and other health workers, with the assistance of the TESDA, NGOs and other concerned agencies.
These local governments are to implement a development program for BHWs that will allow these health workers to benefit from the ladderized training as provided under RA 10968, otherwise known as “The Philippine Qualification Framework Act,” and RA 10647, otherwise known as “The Ladderized Education Act of 2014.”
The House-passed Magna Carta defines a BHW as one who has received training for this purpose under any accredited government agency or NGO, and who has been voluntarily rendering primary healthcare services in communities after having been accredited by the LGUs’ local health boards for this healthcare job.
Every accredited BHW actively and regularly performing his or her duties and responsibilities is entitled under HB 6557 to receive the following incentives and benefits:
· Monthly honorarium of P3,000;
· Hazard allowance, which in no case shall be less than P1,000 per month; Subsistence allowance for meals worth P100 per meal and transportation allowance worth P1,000 per month;
· 20% discount on all items enumerated under Section 4(a) of RA 9994, otherwise known as the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010, provided that “the privileges shall not be claimed if the BHW is eligible for a higher discount as may be granted by the commercial establishment and/or other existing laws;”
· Health benefits such as free medical care, including surgery and surgical expenses; free medicines, x-ray, and other laboratory fees, when confined in any public hospital or health institution;
· Emergency assistance not exceeding P5,000 chargeable against the fund of the barangay concerned, for expenses incurred in the nearest private hospital or clinic, in case of extreme emergency where there is no available public hospital for treating the ailing BHW;
· Mandatory and immediate membership in the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) as indirect contributors;
· GSIS insurance coverage and benefits, to be borne by the LGUs concerned;
· Cash gift of not less than the minimum monthly honorarium to be given every December from the general fund of the barangay or from such other funds appropriated by the national government for the purpose;
· Disability benefit of P2,000 per year for any BHW who sustains injury or sickness in the course of the performance of his or her duties;
· Free Legal Services, to be provided by the Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) in cases of coercion, interference and civil and criminal cases filed by or against any BHW in connection with his or her performance of duties;
· Preferential access to loans, with the agencies providing loan services setting aside 1% of their loanable funds for organized BHW groups that have community-based income generating projects in support of health programs;
· One-time gratuity cash incentive of not less than P10,000 as loyalty and dedication bonus for BHWs who have continuously and satisfactorily served at least 15 years; and
· First-grade Civil Service Eligibility to any accredited BHW who has rendered at least five years of continuous service.
