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

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
FIRST REGULAR SESSION

House Bill No. 2686

INTRODUCED BY Rep. GREG G. GASATAYA

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Art. II, Sec. 15 of the 1987 Constitution states that “The State shall
protect and promote the right to health of the people and instill health
consciousness among them.” Furthermore, Art. XIII, Sec. 11 of the same further
emphasizes that “the State shall adopt an integrated and comprehensive approach
to health development which shall endeavor to make essential goods, health and
other social services available to all the people at affordable cost. There shall be
priority for the needs of the under-privileged, sick, elderly, disabled, women and
children. The State shall endeavor to provide free medical care to paupers.”
Accordingly, the government must exhaust efforts in ensuring quality and
accessible healthcare for its people.

Cardiovascular and kidney diseases remain the top causes of death in our
country today. 276 Filipinos die from heart attack every day and 28,215 regularly
undergo dialysis because of kidney problems, placing heart diseases as the top
killer disease and kidney problems as the seventh (7") top cause of morbidity and
eighth (8") of mortality in the country.

. While there has been significant improvement in the quality of medical
services that the State provides, issues in terms of accessibility due to financial and
geographical constraints still remain. Patients suffering from cardiovascular and
kidney diseases from all over the country are often faced with no other choice but
to go to the Philippine Heart Center and the National Kidney and Transplant
Institute in Metro Manila just to avail of specialized medical assistance from the


government due to lack of local facilities that can accommodate their medical
needs. The deficiency on tertiary (level 3) government medical facilities places
additional burden on patients especially the poor through added expenses such as
travel fare, lodging, and miscellaneous expenditures. In the case of Negros
Occidental, only two (2) government-owned dialysis centers and a lone tertiary
government hospital cater to thousands of patients with cardiovascular and kidney
diseases in the province that patients in need of delicate procedures are left
obligated to travel to Metro Manila.

This bill therefore seeks to address the aforementioned issues and make
quality medical care and services more accessible by establishing a center for heart
and kidney diseases in the City of Bacolod, Province of Negros Occidental.

In view of the foregoing, passage of this bill is earnestly sought.

a

REP. GREG G. GASATAYA
Lone District of Bacolod City


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

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
FIRST REGULAR SESSION

House Bill No, 2686

INTRODUCED BY Rep. GREG G. GASATAYA.

AN ACT CREATING THE BACOLOD-NEGROS HEART
AND KIDNEY CENTER AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR

SECTION 1. Creation of the Bacolod-Negros Heart and Kidney Center;
Board of Trustees. —

There is hereby created a trust, for the benefit primarily of the people of
Negros, under the name and style of "Bacolod-Negros Heart and Kidney Center" in
the City of Bacolod hereinafter referred to as the Institute.

The Institute shall be administered by a Board of Trustees, composed of
seven (7) members, to be appointed by the President of the Philippines, who shall
serve with the term of three (3) years. The Director of the Center shall be
appointed by the Board of Trustees.

Any vacancy in the Board shall be filled by appointment by the President of
the Philippines, and the appointee shall serve for the unexpired term. The Board of
Trustees of the Center shall elect a Chairman from among themselves, who shall
be presiding officer of the Board of Trustees.

The Director of the Center shall serve as Vice-Chairman of the Board. The
Director shall act as the chief executive officer of the Center, with authority,
among others, to appoint, remove, and fix the compensation of the personnel
thereof, subject to the approval of the Board of Trustees.


Four (4) members of the Board of Trustees shall constitute a quorum to
transact business and any decision of such four members on any matter duly
presented to the Board of Trustees shall constitute a valid and binding act of the
Center.

SECTION 2. Government contributions. — The Government shall
constitute the necessary land, building, equipment and facilities, to the Center, and
shall pay such obligations for real, personal and mixed properties arising from such
undertaking under a deferred payment arrangement within 5 years, at a preferred
rate of interest.

SECTION 3. Property of the Center. —The Property of the Center shall
consist of such real, personal, mixed, and other type of property, now owned or
reserved for, or may hereafter be given, donated, acquired, transferred or conveyed
to, the Center by the Philippine Government, its branches and instrumentalities,
any foreign government, as well as by trust, foundations, corporations, or persons,
alien or domestic, in order to carry out its purposes and objectives as set forth
herein.

SECTION 4. Purposes and objectives. — The purposes and objectives of the
Center are:

(a) To construct, establish, operate and maintain a heart and kidney center
for the public welfare, including a specialized heart and kidney hospital;

(b)To promote, encourage, and engage in medical and scientific research
relative to the prevention and treatment of cardio-vascular and kidney
diseases and the care and/or treatment of heart and kidney patients and
related activities, including sponsorship and conduct of relevant
congresses, conventions, seminars, and conferences;

(c) To stimulate and/or underwrite scientific researches on the biological,
demographic, social, economic, eugenic, physiological aspects of kidney
and cardio-vascular disorders and abnormalities and their control; and
gather, compile, and publish the findings of such researches for public
dissemination in coordination with the National Kidney and Transplant
Institute and the Philippine Heart Center;

(d)To encourage and/or undertake the training of physicians, nurses,
medical technicians, health officers and social workers on the practical
and scientific conduct and implementation of kidney and cardiac
services, and related activities;


(e) To assist universities, hospitals and research institutions in their studies
on heart, kidney, and allied diseases and other related fields, to encourage
and grant scholarships for advanced training and specialization in related
fields, and to support educational programs of value to general public
health;

(f) To encourage the formation of other organization on the national,
provincial, city, municipal or barangay level and to coordinate their
various efforts and activities for the purpose of achieving a more
effective programmatic approach on the common problems relative to the
objectives herein enumerated; and

(g)To extend medical and cardiological services to the general public, to
help prevent, relieve or alleviate the innumerable kidney and cardio-
vascular afflictions and maladies of the people specially the poor and less
fortunate in life, without regard to race, creed, color or political belief.

SECTION 5. Powers. — For the attainment and/or furtherance of the above
purposes and objectives, the Institute, as a body corporate, acting through its Board
of Trustees, shall have all the powers pertaining to a juridical person, and is
therefore authorized, among other things:

(a) To acquire and hold in any property of whatever nature or description,
and to dispose of such property under any mode of encumbrance or
conveyance;

(b) To contract and be contracted with;

(c) To mortgage, lease, sell, transfer, convey or otherwise dispose of its
properties;

(d) To solicit and receive donations, endowments and funds in the form of
contributions, whether in cash or in kind, from both the public and private
sectors;

(e) To open such accounts in banks and other financial institutions, and to
disburse such funds or invest the same as the Board may direct to
accomplish or advance the purposes or interest of the Institute;

(f) To invite foreign heart specialists and similar experts in the various
medical fields to train the personnel or trainees or residents of the Institute;


(g) To send the personnel of the Institute to research institutes, medical
institutes or universities for advance training or observation and to attend
international or regional conventions, conferences, congresses, seminars as
the Board may deem necessary to accomplish the purposes and objectives of
the Institute;

(h) To adopt a set of by-laws, rules and regulations not inconsistent with law
and the provisions hereof to govern the administration and operation of the
affairs of the Center; and

(i) To do all such other acts and things as are or may be necessary or
incidental for the accomplishment of the purposes and objectives of the
Institute.

SECTION 6. Tax exemptions, etc.— All donations, contributions or
endowments which may be made by entities or persons to the Center shall be
exempt from income and gift taxes, and the same shall be further deductible in full
for purposes of computing the maximum amount deductible under the National
Internal Revenue Code, as amended.

The Institute shall be exempt from the payment of all taxes, charges and fees
imposed by the Government or any political subdivision or instrumentality thereof.

All income earned by both Filipino and foreigner doctors who shall use the
facilities of the Center shall be tax exempt for a period of five (5) years from the
date of issuance hereof.

SECTION 7. Assistance from government offices, etc. — The Center may
call upon any department, bureau, office, agency or instrumentality of the
Government, including government-owned or controlled corporations, for such
assistance as it may need in the pursuit of its purposes and objectives.

All individuals, entities and institutions are hereby enjoined to render full
assistance and corporation to the Institute in the accomplishment of its objectives
and activities.

SECTION 8. Government contribution. — The amount of P1,000,000,000 is
hereby appropriated as contribution of the National Government for the initial
operations and maintenance of the Center. Thereafter, the necessary amount to
support the continued operation and maintenance of the Bacolod-Negros Heart and


Kidney Center shall be appropriated and released, subject to the approval of the
President of the Philippines.

SECTION 9. Auditing. — The books and accounts of the Center shall be
subject to periodic auditing by the Commission on Audit.

SECTION 10. Annual report. — The Institute shall render to the President
of the Philippines an annual report of its activities and recommendations.

SECTION 11. Effect of dissolution of the Center. — If, for any reason, the
Center is dissolved, its property remaining at the time of such dissolution shall
revert to the Philippine Government for disposition in accordance with law.

SECTION 12. Separability Clause. — lf any provision or part of this Act is
declared invalid or unconstitutional, the remaining parts or provisions not affected
thereby shall remain in full force and effect.

SECTION 13. Repealing Clause. — Any law, presidential decree or
issuance, executive order, letter of instruction, administrative order, rule or
regulation contrary to, or inconsistent with the provisions of this Act is hereby
repealed, modified or amended accordingly.

SECTION 14. Effectivity. — This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days

after its publication in the Official Gazette or in at least two (2) newspapers of
general circulation.

APPROVED,