A House leader on Tuesday batted for the passage of a bill providing for the free and automatic coverage of persons with disabilities (PWDs) under the national health insurance program.
CamSur Rep. LRay Villafuerte said his House Bill 6108, once enacted, will ensure the PWDs full access to health and medical facilities and services, in keeping with the country’s commitment under the UN Convention on the Rights of PWDs.
In filing the bill, Villafuerte noted that based on the results of the Census of Population and Housing in 2010, over 1.4 million Filipinos or approximately 1.57 percent of the entire population have a disability.
Republic Act 7277, or the “Magna Carta for Disabled Persons,” was enacted in 1992 to institute a national health program for PWDs and establish medical rehabilitation centers for them. The law marked a framework for the country to address the health needs and access to basic services of the differently-abled without discrimination, Villafuerte said.