IATF asked to heed health workers’ plea amid pandemic

Senator Grace Poe appealed to the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging and Infectious Diseases (IATF) to act on calls of the country’s health workers for compensation and protection amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The lawmaker backed the appeal as she noted that health workers have been risking their lives and falling ill in battling the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

“The strain of the pandemic is heavily taking its toll on health workers as cases climb. Our doctors, nurses, and hospital staff are not insusceptible to the virus, and need protection as well,” Poe said in a statement.

“As we take care of our patients, let us not forget the needs of the men and women who make sure the sick are treated. Our medical frontliners are the most important human resources that make our health system up and running,” she said.

On April 9, the Day of Valor, healthcare workers staged an online protest to air their plight and reiterate their demand for the release of their benefits.

“They answer to the call of duty while battling their own fear and anxiety. We assure them that at the end of a very long day, their services are appreciated and compensated as they have their own families to attend to,” Poe said.

“No hospital, medical facility, or country can keep patients safe unless its health workers are protected and well taken care of,” she added.

Health workers should be given what is due them under the law and what they deserve for the vital role they play amid the pandemic, Poe said. She added that they should also be provided with proper protective gears and equipment.

Under the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act (Bayanihan 2), all public and private health workers shall be given hazard pay, monthly special risk allowance, meals, transportation, and accommodation.

Health workers who fall ill due to COVID-19 in the line of duty will receive compensation amounting to ₱15,000 for mild cases and ₱100,000 for severe cases.

In case of death, the family of the health worker shall receive P1 million.