Statement of Senator Pia S. Cayetano Chair, Senate Committee on Health and Demography, Senate Committee on Environment and Natural Resources

"In the spirit of transparency on the 2008 budget, I am reissuing the list of amendments I submitted to the Senate finance committee that finalized the national government budget bill last year:

Department of Health - Office of the Secretary

"Of my proposal, only Items #1 and #2 totaling P415,000,000 were included or assumed to have been included in the final version of the General Appropriations Act (RA 9498).

"For verification, please see p.451 (Item III.b.2.d. "Family Health including Family Planning") and p.452 (Item III.b.6.a "Formulation of policies. Standards, and plans for hospitals and other health facilities and management of health care waste disposal including One Hundred Million Pesos (P100,000,000) for the purchase of autoclaves").

"Regrettably, Items #3 and #4 which both seek to fund unimplemented laws meant to raise the salaries and benefits of our nurses and public health workers were left out."

[1] This is intended to cover for the subsistence allowance (P523,746,00 for the P1,500/month) and hazard pay (P487,788,996 - computed at 25/% of the basic pay) of the 29,087 health personnel under the DOH based on Republic Act No. 7305, or the Magna Carta of Public Health Workers, which, since its passage in 1992 has not yet been implemented.

[2] This is intended to cover the implementation of the Philippine Nurses Act of 2002, for the 12, 210 nursing positions in the National Government amounting to P545,644,323 and for the 1,079 nursing positions in Specialty Hospitals amounting to P40,793,809.