Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

TWENTIETH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL No. _ 3095

Introduced by: Hon. Keith Micah “Atty. Mike” D.L. Tan

AN ACT
INSTITUTIONALIZING A NATIONAL ORAL HEALTH PROGRAM AND APPROPRIATING
FUNDS THEREFOR

EXPLANATORY NOTE

A comprehensive analysis drawing on the 2021 Global Burden of Disease study
revealed that an astounding 3.69 billion people—nearly half of the world’s population—
suffered from some form of oral disease in 2021. The primary afflictions were untreated
cavities, inflammatory gum disease (periodontitis), and tooth loss (edentulism). Untreated
cavities alone impacted roughly 27,500 individuals per 100,000—meaning more than a
quarter of all people—while periodontitis affected around 12,500 per 100,000. These
figures represent no substantial improvement globally since 1990, despite increased
awareness and prevention efforts. However, the data do show striking regional disparities:
the African and Eastern Mediterranean regions witnessed the most significant increases in
disease cases and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), while Europe experienced the
smallest changes, even seeing decreases in cavity and oral cancer rates in some parts. This
highlights that while some regions have benefited from stronger public health campaigns
and infrastructure improvements, others remain severely underserved and continue to
experience a mounting oral health crisis.

A disturbing new national oral health survey reveals that around 80 million Filipinos
are suffering from tooth decay, placing the Philippines among the countries with the worst
dental caries rates globally, while another 54 million are experiencing gum disease—a
leading cause of tooth loss—with the World Health Organization noting that the average 70
year old Filipino retains only seven teeth. One of the key drivers of this crisis is the uneven
distribution of dentists, with approximately 60 percent concentrated in Metro Manila,
thereby leaving vast swaths of the archipelago with minimal access to dental care?
Compounding this issue is the financial barrier: many Filipinos perceive dental services as
out of reach due to limited insurance coverage and high out of pocket costs, causing half the
population to seek dental help only when pain becomes unbearable.

In this light, this measure seeks to strengthen the delivery of oral health services in
the country through the adoption of responsive and efficient policies in oral disease
prevention and oral health promotion by scaling up essential programs and increasing

} Cha, ALL. (2025, Mare 24), Move shan 3 billion people haul some type of oral slisease in 2021. report finds. The Washington Post
24 orale
2 Pyaily Tribune. (2025, February 7), SOM Filipinas suffer from rooth decay - neuldh survey. bapsiftribune.net.ph/202:
Filipinos-sutler-teom-tooth decay -healh-survey

gum-disease!

12107/80m-


investments to make oral health treatment and care more equitable and affordable for all
Filipinos.

The bill proposes to establish a National Oral Health Program that will seek to
improve the determinants of oral health; integrate oral health promotion and preventive
services with the general health care system; and provide timely access to quality basic oral
health care and treatment among others. It likewise proposes to establish an Oral Health
Service under the DOH to ensure the promotion and delivery of quality, affordable,
accessible and available oral health care in the country.

One of the important features of the bill is the creation of an oral health unit in every
rural health unit throughout the country consistent with the objectives of the primary health
care approach in the delivery of health services under the Universal Health Care Act.

Oral health care must be seen as important by the government because oral diseases
such as oral cancer, sores, and infections are as deadly as other diseases in the world
considering the fact that even a five-year-old child can get severe tooth decay that affects his
or her performance and wellness at school or play, which is also true with adults. All of these
can be prevented if proper information and services are made available and more accessible
to those who are not aware of how important oral health is for the well-being of every
people.

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

Keith Micah “Atty. Mike” D.L. Tan

4th District, Quezon


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

TWENTIETH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL No. 3035

Introduced by: Hon. Keith Micah “Atty. Mike” D.L. Tan

AN ACT
INSTITUTIONALIZING A NATIONAL ORAL HEALTH PROGRAM AND APPROPRIATING
FUNDS THEREFOR

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

CHAPTERI
INTRODUCTORY PROVISIONS

SECTION 1. Short Title.- The Act shall be known as the “Oral Health Care Act”.

SEC. 2, Declaration of Policy. - Recognizing that oral diseases are major public health
problems and oral health is integral to general health and essential for the well-being of
every people, the State shall adopt an integrated and comprehensive approach to health
development which includes the strengthening of the delivery of quality, affordable,
accessible and available oral health care.

Towards this end, the State shall endeavor to adopt responsive and efficient policies
in oral disease prevention and promotion by scaling up essential programs and increasing
investments to make oral health treatment and care more equitable and affordable for all,
especially for the underprivileged, poor and marginalized Filipinos.

SEC. 3. Definition of Terms. - As used in this Act:

(a) Basic oral health care reters to the essential promotive, preventive, and curative
services that include oral examination, toothbrushing drills, scaling or oral prophylaxis,
filling of restorable cavities and extraction of unsavable teeth, including referral and check-
up of dental clinical cases;

(b) Orally fit child refers to a child who meets the following conditions upon oral
examination and/or completion of treatment: (a) caries-free or carious tooth/teeth filled
either with temporary or permanent filling materials; (b) have healthy gums; (c) has no oral
debris; and (d) no handicapping dento-facial anomaly or no dento-facial anomaly that limits
normal function of the oral cavity;

(c) Oral health refers to a fundamental component of health and physical and mental
well-being that includes the ability to speak, smile, smell, taste, touch, chew, swallow and
convey a range of emotions through facial expressions with confidence and without pain,


discomfort and disease of the craniofacial complex; and
(d) Risk to oral health refers to poor oral hygiene practices
CHAPTER II
ORAL HEALTH PROGRAM AND SERVICES

SEC. 4. National Oral Health Program. - There is hereby established a National Oral
Health Program, hereinafter referred to as the Program, which shall have the following
objectives:

(a) Improve the determinants of oral health;

(b) Integrate oral health promotion and preventive services with general health care
system particularly in the implementation of Republic Act No. 11223, otherwise known as
the Universal Health Care Act and Republic Act No. 11148, otherwise known as the
“Kalusugan at Nutrisyon ng Mag-Nanay Act” as well as health programs such as nutrition,
maternal and child health, women’s health and safe motherhood, adolescent, youth and
elderly, tobacco and drug abuse, water and sanitation, among others;

(c) Provide timely access to quality basic oral health care and treatment;

(d) Control risks to oral health, especially of the younger population;

(e) Reduce the prevalence rate of dental caries and periodontal diseases;

(f) Improve the oral health conditions of pregnant women and older persons;

(g) Increase the proportion of orally fit children;

(h) Make oral health treatment and care more affordable and accessible;

(i) Integrate the prevention of dental decay and basic oral care in health promotion
programs and feeding strategies;

{j) Incorporate prevention and basic oral care activities into the primary health care
package of service:

(k) Reorient oral health policy and planning away from a conventional model of
restorative dentistry towards a preventive model of care that promotes oral health; and

() Ensure the provision of oral health assessment, nutrition services and
interventions at the different life stages, topical fluoride therapy, pits and fissure sealant
application, oral prophylaxis, and permanent fillings, among other services;

SEC. 5. Strengthening of the Regional Centers for Health Development in the Provision
of Oral Health Services. - The Secretary of Health shall strengthen the Regional Centers for
Health Development in the provision of oral health services by undertaking the following
activities:

(a) Provide basic package of essential oral health services for every lifecycle group


such as infants, pregnant women, children, adolescent and youth, and senior citizens;

(b) Provide outreach programs and activities in unserved and underserved areas of
the country;

(c) Undertake public information and education programs to train the public on oral
hygiene;

(d) Train and enhance the capability of oral health providers in both public and
private hospitals; and

{e) Ensure that monitoring services are extended as far as practicable, at the lowest
local level health unit

CHAPTER III
ORAL HEALTH SERVICE

SEC. 6. Oral Health Service (OHS). - There is hereby established an Oral Health Service,
hereinafter referred to as the OHS, under the Department of Health (DOH) to ensure the
promotion and delivery of quality, affordable, accessible and available oral health care. It
shall take overall responsibility for policy development, standard setting, coordination, and
integration of all oral health activities.

‘The OHS shall be headed by a Director who shall be designated to provide operational
leadership, undertake coordination with stakeholders and ensure effective and sustainable
implementation of the Program. The Director must be a dentist of good moral character and
must have practiced clinical dentistry for a period of not less than ten (10) years with
relevant background in the area of disease prevention and control or public health for not
less than five (5) years.

The OHS shall have the following units: Standards, Policy and Planning Unit;
Research, Surveillance, Monitoring and Evaluation Unit; Logistics Management and Supply
Unit; Administrative Unit; and such other units as may be deemed necessary in the interest
of the efficient and effective delivery of oral health services.

SEC. 7. Powers and Functions. - The OHS shall exercise the following powers and
functions:

(a) Formulate and recommend policies, standards, guidelines and techniques on oral
health services;

(b) Develop and oversee the implementation of the Program that aims to define and
address the oral health burden of the country. The role and obligations of government
agencies and stakeholders shall be clearly defined and shall endeavor to specify national and
regional oral health indicators that is responsive, evidenced-based and culturally sensitive.

(c) Coordinate and oversee the provision of oral health services in all hospitals of the
national government and local government units;

(d) Provide consultative and training services to non-government agencies on


development of oral health care programs and research;

(e) Initiate the formulation and conduct of basic, applied and operational researches
for the prevention of oral health disease and feasibility studies for the improvement of oral
health care delivery system;

(1) Coordinate and oversee capacity building in the development of human resources
for oral health in partnership with Professional Regulations Commission (PRC), academe,
including state colleges and universities (SUCs), Commission on Higher Education (CHED),
Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), oral health professional
organizations, students of dentistry, dental hygiene and dental technicians;

(g) Supervise and coordinate all oral health activities of DOH-Centers for Health
Development; and

(h) Provide technical assistance on oral health in DOH-Centers for Health
Development and with the Ministry of Health-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim
Mindanao (MOH-BARMM), and local government units

CHAPTER IV
HUMAN RESOURCES FOR ORAL HEALTH

SEC. 8. Personnel Complement. - To ensure the effective implementation of this Act,
the personnel complement currently assigned for the existing oral health program of the
DOH under the Family Health Office of the Disease Prevention and Control Bureau shall be
transferred to the OHS. The Secretary of Health shall, in coordination with the Secretary of
Budget and Management (DBM), address human resource needs by creating the additional
plantilla positions for oral health professionals and necessary personnel required in the
Program: Provided, That deployment to Geographically Isolated and Disadvantaged Areas
(GIDAs) shall be prioritized. It shall ensure that salaries of oral health professionals in the
public sector are competitive.

Human resource development for oral health shall be geared towards the
development of adequate, appropriate, competent and highly motivated health
professionals and trained auxiliaries to manage and provide quality oral health services.

SEC. 9. Capacity Development. - The DOH, in collaboration with oral health
professional societies, LGUs leagues, and LGU-based associations, academic institutions,
civil society organizations, and the private sector, shall formulate, implement and update
capacity development program for all health care workers providing oral health
services/care and support at all levels of the health care system. The capability of public
health systems and facilities in the provision of oral health services shall also be
strengthened through the following activities:

(a) Allocation of adequate resources to ensure the provision of essential oral health
services;

(b) Provision of relevant, timely, and accurate information management system for
oral health; and


(c) Build up highly motivated health professionals and trained auxiliaries to manage
and provide quality oral health care

CHAPTER V
ORAL HEALTH AWARENESS AND PROMOTION

SEC. 10. Oral Health Awareness Campaign. - The DOH shall intensify its oral health
awareness campaign and provide the latest and evidence-based information for the
prevention and treatment of oral diseases. The DOH, in collaboration with the Department
of Information and Communications Technology, shall make full use of the latest technology
to disseminate information to reach every Filipino. The awareness campaign must increase
oral health literacy and understanding of risk factors associated with oral disease.

SEC. 11. National Oral Health Month. - The month of February of every year shall be
known as the “National Oral Health Month” throughout the Philippines. The DOH, in
collaboration with the Philippine Information Agency, local government units, dental
societies, and academic institutions shall lead the observance of the National Oral Health
Month.

SEC. 12. Oral Health Promotion and Advocacy. - The Health Promotion Bureau of the
DOH shall develop a comprehensive oral health communication plan that will encompass
promotion, communication and advocacy of oral health across the life stages applicable for
all settings. Additional positions shall be created to complement the oral health services,
patient’s education and public health promotions. The DOH as the overall steward for health
care, shall strengthen national efforts in providing a comprehensive and coordinated
approach to health development with emphasis on scaling up health promotion and
preventive care.

CHAPTER VI
ORAL HEALTH SERVICE IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS

SEC. 13. Oral Health Program in Local Government Units. - All provinces, cities,
municipalities, and barangays shall implement their respective oral health programs in
accordance with the National Oral Health Program. Local government units shall ensure the
delivery of quality, affordable, accessible, and available oral health services in their
respective health facilities.

SEC. 14. Oral Health Unit in Rural Health Unit. - In pursuit of the primary health care
approach in the delivery of health services, there is hereby created an oral health unit in
every rural health unit. The Oral Health Unit shall be composed of a public health dentist
and a trained Barangay Health Worker as a dental aide who shall act to promote preventive
oral healthcare in the rural areas.

CHAPTER VII
REGULATION

SEC. 15. Incorporation of Oral Health in the Standards, Licensing, Regulation, Quality
Assurance, Monitoring and Evaluation of Health Facilities. - The Health Facilities and Services
Regulatory Bureau (HFSRB) of the Department of Health shall incorporate oral health in the


standards, licensing, regulation, quality assurance, monitoring and evaluation of health
facilities. Likewise, the HFSRB shall employ Dentist IV and Dentist III positions to
complement their human resource requirements.

SEC. 16. Prevention of Illegal Practices in Oral Health. - The Professional Regulatory
Commission (PRC) shall adopt an effective regulatory framework, in consultation with the
Philippine Dental Association (PDA), to prevent illegal practices in the oral health
profession.

CHAPTER VIII
FINAL PROVISIONS

SEC. 17. PhilHealth Benefits. - The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation
(PhilHealth) shall expand its benefit packages for oral health services in both adults and
children, The development and expansion of PhilHealth benefits shall go through proper,
transparent and standardized prioritization process in accordance with the appropriate
provisions of the UHC Act.

SEC. 18. Annual Report. - The Secretary of Health shall submit to the Committees on
Health of the Senate and the House of Representatives an annual report on the progress of
the implementation of this Act.

SEC. 19. Appropriations. - The amount necessary for the implementation of this Act
shall be charged to the current appropriations of the DOH. The amount for the continued
implementation of this Act shall be included in the annual General Appropriations Act.

SEC. 20. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The DOH, in consultation and
coordination with appropriate national government agencies, non-government
organizations, private sector representatives, and other stakeholders, shall promulgate the
necessary rules and regulations for the effective implementation of this Act no later than
one hundred eighty (180) days upon the effectivity of this Act.

SEC. 21. Separability Clause. - \f any provision of this Act is held invalid or
unconstitutional, the same shall not affect the validity and effectivity of the other pro’
hereof.

SEC. 22. Repealing Clause. - All other laws, decrees, executive orders and rules and
regulations contrary to or inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed,
modified or amended accordingly.

SEC. 23. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in
the Official Gazette or in any newspaper of general circulation.

Approved,