A party-list lawmaker pushed for the passage of a bill institutionalizing a comprehensive health insurance package for public school teachers, including an annual P7,000 medical allowance.
Bicol Saro party-list Rep. Brian Raymund Yamsuan said House Bill No. 10990, said once enacted, the measure shall make the plan of the Department of Education to provide HMO-type coverage for public school teachers a permanent feature of their benefits package.
“Our bill also promotes preventive healthcare. With HMO-type benefits, our usually overworked public school teachers would be able to maintain their well-being and get treatment when necessary without having to worry about mounting medical expenses, long before health concerns become severe or life-threatening,” Yamsuan said.
Close to one million public school teachers in the basic education system stand to benefit from the measure, he said.
Under HB No. 10990, qualified public school teachers shall each receive an annual medical allowance not exceeding P7,000 as subsidy to enable the DepEd to procure a contract with an HMO on their behalf.
Yamsuan said the amount of medical allowance is subject to mandatory review every three years by the DepEd to ensure it is sufficient and reflective of current market prices.
“Our goal in filing the bill is to make sure that the grant of expanded healthcare benefits to our public school teachers would be a regular and permanent part of the benefits they are receiving from the government,” he said.
HB No. 10990, Yamsuan said, would help carry out his Health, Opportunities, Peace and Education or HOPE agenda for Parañaque’s second district, where he will run as congressional representative in next year’s midterm elections.
