Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
Third Regular Session

8752
House Bill No. ___

Introduced by DIWA Party-list Representative Pepito M. Pico

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Efforts to combat drug addiction and drug trafficking in the country have been the focus of the
current administration, many of these efforts concentrated on law enforcement action that are
an extension of the President's crusade against drugs.

The pernicious effects of drugs cannot, however, be addressed solely through police action. A
focus on incarceration, prosecution, and punishment is far from ideal when it comes to those
who are victims in their own right, through circumstances of desperation or ignorance. The
ideal that we should aim for is not merely a nation which is drug-free, but one where those who
were previously under the self-destructive spell of drugs have reformed and returned to being
dutiful members of society. A punishment-focused approach forfeits the possibility that some
of the damage wrought can be completely undone -- rehabilitation does not.

Addiction is in many ways a disease, caused by a combination of behavioral, environmental
and biological factors, where continued release of pleasure-inducing chemicals causes changes
in the brain systems involved in reward, motivation and memory.' While the initial choice to
do drugs is usually just that ~ a conscious choice -- once the brain has been changed by
addiction, that willpower and the ability to choose becomes impaired.” Addiction is a disease,
a treatable and curable disease, and the State must have programs, facilities, and resources that
engage it as such -- because out ideal must be to cure, to rehabilitate, to redeem. We must never
lose sight of the fact that with help, it becomes possible to achieve the miraculous: to turn back
the hands of time and allow one who was lost to find him or herself again.

This is not a new policy for the government: as stated in Republic Act 9165 or the
Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, the State must provide effective mechanisms
or measures to re-integrate into society individuals who have fallen victim to drug abuse or
dangerous drug dependence through sustainable programs of treatment and rehabilitation.

* http://www.centeronaddiction.org/addiction/disease-model-addiction
2d.

Page 1 of 5


According to the website of the Dangerous Drug Board, the country has forty one residential
rehabilitation centers, and three out-patient centers, numbers which are unlikely to provide
sufficient venues for rehabilitation given the number of drug users who have been captured or
who have surrendered since the President took office. For that reason and to further strengthen
the rehabilitation programs of the country, this bill — a re-filing of House Bill 3108 filed by
DIWA Party-list Representative Emmeline Villar and as a counterpart of Senate Bill No. 718
of Senator Cynthia Villar -- seeks to establish accessible rehabilitation centers in every
province and city in the Philippines that will cater to the welfare of drug dependents in order
to sustain the government's efforts in achieving drug-free society.

PERITO M. PICO
Representative, DIWA Party-list

Page 2 of 5


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
Third Regular Session

8752
House Bill No. __

Introduced by DIWA Party-list Representative Pepito M. Pico

AN ACT
STRENGTHENING THE GOVERNMENT’S EFFORTS TOWARDS THE
TREATMENT AND REHABILITATION OF DRUG DEPENDENTS BY
ESTABLISHING DRUG REHABILITATION CENTERS IN EVERY PROVINCE
AND CITY IN THE COUNTRY, APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR AND FOR
OTHER PURPOSES

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Republic of the Philippines in Congress
assembled:

SECTION 1. Creation. — In order to complement the intensified drive to eradicate dangerous
and/or illegal drugs in the country, there shall be treatment and rehabilitation centers
(hereinafter referred to as centers) for drug dependents established in every province and city
in the Philippines. These centers shall be supervised by the Department of Health.

Section 2. Objectives and Functions. ~ These centers so established shall have the following
objectives and functions:

(a) To provide care, treatment and accommodation to every person found to be a
drug dependent;

(b) To bring such drug dependent to a state where he is physically, psychologically
and socially capable to cope with problems common to his peer group;

(©) To facilitate and encourage the dissemination and exchange of ideas and
information on the prevention, care, treatment and control of drug addiction;

(a) To provide after-care, follow-up and social reintegration services to every drug
dependent in order to assist in his assimilation to his family and community after his release
from the center;

(e) To provide motivation to each drug dependent in order that he could regain self-
confidence, rediscover his working abilities and develop a sense of responsibility for himself;

Page 3 of 5


(8) To encourage the formation of organization and associations composed of
parents, guardians and immediate relatives of drug dependents in order to arouse their
awareness and enhance their participation in the care, treatment and rehabilitation of their
relatives or wards found to be drug dependent patients;

(g) To undertake continuous training of physicians, nurses, health officers and
social workers on the practical and scientific methods of prevention, care, treatment and
rehabilitation of persons found to be drug dependents; and

(h) To strengthen the emotional and spiritual make-up of every drug dependent by
conducting regular guidance and counseling sessions as well as interdenominational services.

Section 3. Sites of the Centers. — The Secretary of Health and the local chief executives shall
determine the location of the centers in their respective provinces and cities in the country.

In the determination and prioritization of the sites where centers will be established,
consideration shall be given to the following:

(a) Existence (or the lack) of national and local government-operated or -accredited
rehabilitation centers;

(6) Density of the population and rate of incidence of drug dependence; and

(©) Locations that will provide peaceful and quiet environments in order to ensure
a focused and uninterrupted treatment and rehabilitation of the drug dependents but at the same
time reasonably accessible to the prospective clientele;

Pending the establishment of centers in some provinces, the Secretary of Health should initiate
drug rehabilitation programs in existing government hospitals in the province.

Section 4. Ajfordability of Rehabilitation and Treatment. — The Secretary of Health shall
establish a socialized scheme for the payment of the expenses of rehabilitation and treatment
of drug dependents with the end in view that it is the government's duty to ensure that drug
dependents are rehabilitated and reintegrated into society; Provided, that drug dependents who
are indigents and whose immediate next of kin are likewise indigent shall not be required to
pay; Provided further, that expenses of rehabilitation and treatment may be chargeable to
Philhealth by drug dependents who are likewise its members in good standing; and Provided
finally, that drug dependents shall not be required to pay a deposit as a condition for their
admittance to any government-operated center or government hospitals.

Section 5. Director of the Center. ~ Each of the Centers shall be headed by a Director, who
shall be appointed by the Secretary of Health and vested with powers generally exercised by a
chief of a government hospital.

The appointment of the directors of the centers should follow a reliable and stringent selection
process, to be adopted by the Department of Health. In no case shall a person be appointed as
Director of a Center unless he or she possesses the following qualifications, among others:
shall be of good moral character; shall be of sound mind; shall not have been convicted by a
court of competent jurisdiction of any offense involving moral turpitude; shall be a holder of
the degree of Doctor of Medicine or its equivalent conferred by a college of medicine duly
recognized by the government; and shall have at least five (5) years experience in the care,
treatment and rehabilitation of drug dependents.

Page 4 of 5


Section 6. Personnel and Staff. — The Secretary of Health, in consultation with the Director
of the respective centers, shall appoint such other personnel and staff as may be necessary for
the effective operation of the Center, subject to existing laws, rules, and regulations.

In line with the local government units’ role of assisting in the rehabilitation or treatment of
drug dependents provided under Section 51 of Republic Act 9165 or the Comprehensive
Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, as amended, local government units may detail personnel, as
may be necessary, to perform tasks and functions that are supportive to the complete and
effective rehabilitation of drug dependents being treated in the centers.

It is mandatory that the officials, personnel and staff to be employed and/or detailed at the
centers will undergo integrity tests and trainings, from time to time, as measure to prevent
infiltration by drug syndicates into our drug rehabilitation centers and system.

Section 7. Government Assistance to the Center, — The Secretary of Health is hereby
authorized to call upon any department, bureau, agency or instrumentality of the government
for such assistance as may be necessary for the effective implementation of this Act.

Section 8. Rules and Regulations. — The Secretary of the Department of Health, in
coordination with the Department of Social Welfare and Development, the Department of
Interior and Local Government, the Philippine National Police, the Philippine Drug
Enforcement Agency, concerned non-governmental organizations, and other stakeholders,
shall promulgate such rules and regulations as may be necessary to secure an effective
administration of the centers and the effective implementation of the provisions of this Act,
within sixty (60) days from the approval of this Act.

Section 9. Appropriations. — The sum necessary for the effective implementation of this Act
shall be charged against the appropriations for the Department of Health under the General
Appropriations Act.

Thereafter, such amount as may be necessary for the continued operation of the centers shall
be included in the annual General Appropriations Act.

Section 10. Effectivity. — This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in the
Official Gazette or in any two newspapers of general circulation.

Approved,

Page 5 of 5