Albay Rep. Joey Salceda welcomed a newly signed Department of Health (DOH) administrative order removing the requirement of a purchase booklet for senior citizens to avail of their discount on medicines following the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010.
“Byebye booklet. I thank the DOH for making permanent the change we requested in the House’s joint committee hearings on senior citizens’, PWD, and solo parents’ benefits. It’s a long overdue change. Salamat PBBM and salamat, (Health) Secretary Ted Herbosa,” the lawmaker said.
Salceda, a resident economist who chairs the House Committee on Ways and Means, issued the statement following the issuance of DOH AO No. 2024-0017, which removed the requirement of presenting a Senior Citizen’s Booklet when availing of medicine discounts for seniors.
“During the House hearings, it was brought up that the booklet requirement often causes senior citizens to get denied essential medicines. Senior citizens often forget these documents, or lose them,” Salceda said.
The lawmaker said the 20 percent medicine discount, along with the VAT-free treatment for a significant number of medicines, has been a lifesaver for many senior citizens.
“The January to March 2024 hearings of the House on senior and PWD discounts remains one of its most productive undertakings ever. We obtained at least P112 billion in benefits for these sectors, without even changing any laws yet. The removal of the booklet requirement is one of its major accomplishments,” he said.
Salceda credited Speaker Martin Romuladez’s efforts for the issuance of DOH AO No. 2024-0017.
“It was Speaker Romualdez’s idea to bring the committees together and make things right for seniors and persons with disabilities,” he said. “Those hearings accomplished so much. We were able to get Starbucks to do a 40 percent discount to compensate for misapplication of the standard discount.”
Salceda noted that other notable changes include pledged improvements for discount grants from power utility and transport network vehicle services, as well as the expansion of benefit packages for persons with disabilities (PWDs) from PhilHealth and seniors’ eligibility for the TUPAD program.
“We got DTI (Department of Trade and Industry), DA (Department of Agriculture), and DOE (Department of Energy) to expand the SC (senior citizens) and PWD discount on basic goods from P260 a month to P500 a month,” he added.
Salceda stressed “the House (of Representatives) will continue this approach of critical collaboration with the executive department. It gets things done for the people.”
