House bill granting mandatory SRA to health workers approved on third reading

The House of Representatives on Monday approved on final reading a bill that seeks to provide continuous benefits to public and private health workers, including barangay health workers, during the COVID-19 pandemic and future health emergencies.

House Bill 10701 obtained 202 affirmative votes during the plenary session.

The bill seeks to advance the welfare of healthcare workers by providing them with appropriate and continuous benefits during national public health emergencies to ensure their continued services to the public.

The key provisions of this bill include granting Special Risk Allowance (SRA) to health workers for every month of service during a state of public health emergency.

Those deployed in low-risk areas will be given at least P3,000; those in medium-risk areas will receive P6,000; and those in high-risk areas will get P9,000, according to the measure.

The bill said the amount may be increased by the Department of Health, subject to the approval of the President and in consultation with the Department of Budget and Management.

The bill states that in case of death, P1 million shall be provided to the heirs of the covered individuals while in case of sickness, for a severe or critical case, P100,000 shall be provided to them.

Further, those with mild or moderate cases will be given P15,000.

The compensation provided in the proposed measure shall be given to the beneficiaries not later than three months after the date of confinement or death.

The measure also provides for the regular COVID-19 testing of health workers covered by the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth). The frequency will be determined by the DOH.—LDF, GMA News