ILOILO – More than 11,800 barangay health workers (BHWs) across Iloilo Province stand to receive at least P3,000 in monthly benefits and other long-sought assistance under a Magna Carta unanimously approved by the Senate.
The passage of Senate Bill No. 1905 on third and final reading has raised hopes among Iloilo’s volunteer BHWs — many of whom receive only P1,000 to P2,000 honoraria a month despite decades of frontline service — that their contributions to public healthcare will finally gain formal recognition from the national government.
The proposed Magna Carta of Barangay Health Workers secured 20 affirmative votes, with no negative vote or abstention. It seeks to protect and empower BHWs in delivering primary healthcare nationwide.
“Bahul gid nga bagay para kanamon nga makabulig sa amon pagsenerayo kag gina-acknowledge kami kang national government,” said BHW Iloilo Federation president Violeta Gicana.
Gicana, 71, of Barangay Bagumbayan, Guimbal town, has served as a BHW for 46 years.
“Happy kami nga na-aprubahan dun sa Senate, at least ma-acknowledge ang amon nga trabaho bilang volunteer workers sa health. Ginapangamuyo namon mga benepisyo namon,” Gicana told Panay News.
She expressed hope that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. would immediately sign the measure into law so its benefits could take effect.
“Bahul gid nga bagay para kanamon. Makabulgi sa amon pagsenerayo,” Gicana added.
Apart from the monthly benefit, qualified BHWs may receive transportation and hazard allowances, cash gifts, insurance coverage, mental health services, free legal assistance and loyalty incentives.
Gicana particularly welcomed the one-time loyalty incentive of at least P10,000 for BHWs who have rendered at least 15 years of continuous and satisfactory service.
Certified BHWs with at least five years of continuous and satisfactory service may also qualify for sub-professional civil service eligibility, subject to Civil Service Commission rules.
Iloilo has more than 11,800 BHWs serving its 43 municipalities and component city of Passi. Most receive allowances from their respective barangays, with the amount depending on the barangay’s income and financial capacity.
In Guimbal, Gicana said BHWs receive between P1,000 and P2,000 monthly. They also get a P5,000 cash gift every December from the Iloilo provincial government under Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr.
Senior citizens serving as BHWs, however, no longer receive barangay allowances because they already collect monthly social pensions.
Gicana has been lobbying during regional BHW meetings for senior-citizen health workers to receive separate allowances, arguing that the assistance could at least cover their transportation expenses when attending meetings in their local government units.
Some Iloilo BHWs are already more than 80 years old, while the province’s longest-serving health workers have spent as many as 48 years in volunteer service.
BHWs serve as frontliners in provincial, municipal and barangay health programs. Their duties include conducting information and education campaigns against preventable diseases such as dengue, taking vital signs at barangay health stations and monitoring sick residents for timely referral to rural health units.
Their frontline role became particularly crucial during the COVID-19 pandemic, when they continued serving their communities despite the risk of contracting the virus.
The Senate-approved measure also provides training programs, scholarships and government plantilla positions for BHWs.
It declares April 7 of every year as Barangay Health Workers Day and the start of Barangay Health Workers Week “in recognition of the invaluable service and dedication of BHWs in delivering primary healthcare and promoting community health.”
Senate Bill No. 1905 was authored by Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian, Majority Leader Miguel Zubiri, Minority Leader Alan Cayetano and senators JV Ejercito, Loren Legarda, Risa Hontiveros, Ronald Dela Rosa, Joel Villanueva, Christopher “Bong” Go, Jinggoy Estrada, Francis Pangilinan, Mark Villar, Robin Padilla, Lito Lapid, Erwin Tulfo, and Raffy Tulfo./PN