DBM releases additional SRA for health workers

The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) announced that the national government has released another tranche of Special Risk Allowance (SRA) for public and private healthcare workers (HCWs).

In a statement, the budget department said on Friday, Jan. 21, that an additional funding amounting to P1.185 billion for the SRA was released following the approval of President Rodrigo Duterte.

DBM said the additional SRA payment is for 63,812 eligible public and private HCWs who were directly catering to or were in contact with COVID-19 patients.

“Overall, the DBM released a total of P11.856 billion, which benefitted 562,928 HCWs who shall receive an SRA not exceeding P5,000 per month from December 20, 2020 to June 30, 2021,” the department said.

The SRA is an additional benefit received by HCWs, apart from the existing compensations as prescribed under the Magna Carta of Public Health Workers and the DOH-DBM Joint Circular No. 1, series of 2016.

In September last year, President Duterte ordered the DBM and the Department of Health (DOH) to release the SRA of healthcare workers.

The chief executive’s directive came after complaints from medical professional groups on the delayed release of the SRA.