Solon wants more competitive salaries for gov't doctors

A lawmaker filed a measure which would exempt public hospital doctors from being covered by the Salary Standardization Law (SSL), thus making their salaries more competitive.

By filing House Bill 640, Masbate Representative Elisa Kho aimed to address the country's need for a stronger health workforce by encouraging to doctors to stay and work in the Philippines rather than practicing abroad.

Citing data from the Professional Regulation Commission, Kho said that are currently 72,000 licensed doctors in the Philippines, bringing the doctor-patient ratio to one physician is to 1,429 people.

This was below to the World Health Organization's prescribe ratio of one is to 1,000 people. In the rural areas, the shortage is more acute as the doctor-patient ratio balloon to one is to 33,000 people.

“This shortage results from our medical professionals leaving our country because of economic needs, low salaries, and inhuman working conditions," Kho argued. "With our doctors migrating, the Philippines is said to be the second biggest importer of doctors in the world.”

Under Kho's measure, doctors with the proper employment requirements and documents in government service and had passed the board examination for physicians with permanents status, would be eligible for coverage.

Meanwhile, the Department of Health (DOH), in consultation with the Department of Budget and Management, would be tasked to study, review, analyze, revise, adjust and implement a comprehensive and competitive salary structure for doctors in public hospitals, independent from SSL provisions.

The funds to implement the provisions of the measure would be charged from the DOH's appropriations for the year following its enactment into law.

Such funds would then be allocated from the annual national budget of the DOH in the years thereafter. — Erwin Colcol/DVM, GMA News