Manila Bulletin
Duterte to Duque: Prioritize benefits for health workers
President Rodrigo Duterte has directed the Department of Health (DOH) to prioritize the release of benefits for health workers, provided sufficient funds are available.
Duterte specifically told Health Secretary Francisco Duque III to prioritize these payments and to disregard the Commission on Audit (COA) if necessary, emphasizing the need to pay health workers and borrow money for medicines.
This directive addresses complaints from various public and private health worker groups regarding delayed payments of special risk allowances and other benefits like meal, transportation, and accommodation allowances.
Previously, P15 billion was allocated under the Bayanihan 2 law for special risk and hazard pay, which Undersecretary Leopoldo Vega stated had already been disbursed to hospitals.
Health Secretary Francisco Duque III acknowledged the reports and committed to investigating the non-receipt of payments by some health workers.
The Senate Blue Ribbon Committee is also set to investigate these delays and non-releases as part of its public hearing on the DOH's alleged deficiencies in using its P67-billion COVID-19 funds.
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Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon urged Health Secretary Francisco Duque III to take responsibility for the delayed release of benefits to medical frontliners.
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Officials from the Department of Health (DOH) and the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) are engaged in a blame game regarding the delayed release of the special risk allowance (SRA) for healthcare workers.
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Ang Probinsyano Party-list Representative Alfred Delos Santos is seeking an investigation into the delayed release and discrepancies in the special risk allowance (SRA) for healthcare workers.
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The Department of Health (DOH) will allocate P311 million from its contingency fund to provide a special risk allowance (SRA) to an additional 20,000 health workers.
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Health workers from both public and private sectors are considering a mass protest due to the government's failure to release their benefits, despite their role on the frontlines of the pandemic.
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