DOH seeks amendment to Magna Carta of Public Health Workers
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Health said Friday it is pushing to amend the Magna Carta of Public Health Workers and to standardize the salaries of medical professionals in private and public health facilities.
Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire, officer-in-charge of the DOH, called on lawmakers to support the agency’s priority legislations to ensure the welfare of healthcare workers.
Vergeire said the Magna Carta Public Health Workers, which was enacted 30 years ago, needs to be amended to cover both public and private healthcare workers in the country.
According to the health official, the salient features of the proposed legislation include additional compensation, provision of hazard pay, and educational assistance for healthcare workers.
The DOH is also pushing for a measure standardizing the salaries of medical workers to stem the exodus of health workers.
“We are pushing a bill on salary standardization for human resources for health both for public and private, and both for the national and local health sectors so there will be no difference as to the salaries [of health workers],” Vergeire said.
Filipino Nurses United earlier called for an entry salary of P50,000 a month for nurses in private and public health facilities to enable them to “live decently commensurate to their crucial role in health promotion and protection of our fellow Filipinos."
According to the organization, more than 100,000 nurses in the private sector earn P537 per day in Metro Manila and much lower in areas outside the capital region. The minimum wage in the National Capital Region is P570.
The minimum salary of nurses in government-run health institutions is currently at around P35,000. While they have relatively higher pay, they also suffer from work and patient overload. — Gaea Katreena Cabico
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