Go's Malasakit Center bill breezes through 2nd reading in Congress
Published Nov 14, 2019 08:50 pm
By Ben Rosario
The House of Representatives has passed on second reading Sen. Christopher “Bong” Go’s pet bill proposing to institutionalize Malasakit Centers in all Department of health hospitals.
House of the Representatives (ALVIN KASIBAN / MANILA BULLETIN / FILE PHOTO)
The Senate version of House Bill 5477 was earlier approved by senators while the Lower Chamber took just at least two hours to pass the measure on second reading on Wednesday night.
A consolidation of at least 18 legislative measures, HB 5477 proposes the institutionalized operation of Malasakit Centers. It provides for nearly P300 million in the budget for payment of personnel services to be provided by 73 one-stop-shop center for indigent Filipinos needing financial assistance for medical expenses.
The bill seeks to create Malasakit centers in all DOH hospitals and the PGH to serve as a one-stop-shop for medical and financial assistance. The centers would also provide patient navigation and refer them to a health care provider network.
Opposition Rep. Edcel Lagman (LP, Albay) assailed the alleged railroading of the bill’s approval, saying that plenary discussions on the proposal have not been fully exhausted.
“ It is bad enough when a bill is approved by a tyranny of numbers over the ascendancy of reason, but it is worst when a bill is deemed approved by a paucity of numbers in derogation of parliamentary rules,” said Lagman.
Only a handful of House members were present during the voice vote for approval of the measure.
Lagman’s protests against the voting were heard but were ignored by then presiding officer, Deputy Speaker Raneo Abu of Batangas.
“It turned out that the substitute bill was a carbon copy of Senate Bill No. 1076 authored by Senator Cristopher “Bong” Go which was previously approved on November 11, 2019, by the Senate,” lamented Lagman.
He noted that the so-called “copycat version” allegedly lifted in its entirety from the Senate bill was not even given to Quezon Rep. Angelina Tan, chairperson of the Committee on Health who was tasked to defend the bill during plenary debates.
“Due to the imposition by Go that a House bill identical to his must be approved and the House leadership’s acceding to his insistence, the committee system of the House, as well as the import of its plenary deliberations, were put to naught in favor of exigency and conscripted unanimity,’ said Lagman.
Authors of HB 5477 said the creation of the Malasakit program is expected to “reduce, if not eliminate, out-of-pocket expenditures” of indigent patients.
The bill provides a centralized office to process and allocates financial assistance extended by the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office, Department of Health, Department of Social Welfare and Development and other state agencies that grant such service.
Authors of the bill were Reps. Anna Marie Villaraza-Suarez (ALONA Partylist); David C. Suarez (PDP-Laban, Quezon); Yul Servo (NUP, Manila); Eric Go-Yap, Jocelyn P. Tulfo and Rowena Taduran of ACT-CIS Partylist; Eleandro Jesus Madrona (PDP-Laban, Romblon); Ma. Lourdes Arroyo (Lakas-CMD, Negros Occidental); Elpidio Barzaga (NUP, Cavite); and Vincent Franco Frasco (PDP-Laban, Cebu).
House of the Representatives (ALVIN KASIBAN / MANILA BULLETIN / FILE PHOTO)
The Senate version of House Bill 5477 was earlier approved by senators while the Lower Chamber took just at least two hours to pass the measure on second reading on Wednesday night.
A consolidation of at least 18 legislative measures, HB 5477 proposes the institutionalized operation of Malasakit Centers. It provides for nearly P300 million in the budget for payment of personnel services to be provided by 73 one-stop-shop center for indigent Filipinos needing financial assistance for medical expenses.
The bill seeks to create Malasakit centers in all DOH hospitals and the PGH to serve as a one-stop-shop for medical and financial assistance. The centers would also provide patient navigation and refer them to a health care provider network.
Opposition Rep. Edcel Lagman (LP, Albay) assailed the alleged railroading of the bill’s approval, saying that plenary discussions on the proposal have not been fully exhausted.
“ It is bad enough when a bill is approved by a tyranny of numbers over the ascendancy of reason, but it is worst when a bill is deemed approved by a paucity of numbers in derogation of parliamentary rules,” said Lagman.
Only a handful of House members were present during the voice vote for approval of the measure.
Lagman’s protests against the voting were heard but were ignored by then presiding officer, Deputy Speaker Raneo Abu of Batangas.
“It turned out that the substitute bill was a carbon copy of Senate Bill No. 1076 authored by Senator Cristopher “Bong” Go which was previously approved on November 11, 2019, by the Senate,” lamented Lagman.
He noted that the so-called “copycat version” allegedly lifted in its entirety from the Senate bill was not even given to Quezon Rep. Angelina Tan, chairperson of the Committee on Health who was tasked to defend the bill during plenary debates.
“Due to the imposition by Go that a House bill identical to his must be approved and the House leadership’s acceding to his insistence, the committee system of the House, as well as the import of its plenary deliberations, were put to naught in favor of exigency and conscripted unanimity,’ said Lagman.
Authors of HB 5477 said the creation of the Malasakit program is expected to “reduce, if not eliminate, out-of-pocket expenditures” of indigent patients.
The bill provides a centralized office to process and allocates financial assistance extended by the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office, Department of Health, Department of Social Welfare and Development and other state agencies that grant such service.
Authors of the bill were Reps. Anna Marie Villaraza-Suarez (ALONA Partylist); David C. Suarez (PDP-Laban, Quezon); Yul Servo (NUP, Manila); Eric Go-Yap, Jocelyn P. Tulfo and Rowena Taduran of ACT-CIS Partylist; Eleandro Jesus Madrona (PDP-Laban, Romblon); Ma. Lourdes Arroyo (Lakas-CMD, Negros Occidental); Elpidio Barzaga (NUP, Cavite); and Vincent Franco Frasco (PDP-Laban, Cebu).