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Republic of the Philippines a LAT <=
YATEs JUL 21 208%
House of Representatines
Quezon City, Metre Manila
EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
Second Regular Session

House Bill No, _7140

INTRODUCED BY
REP. ALFRED VARGAS,

AN ACT
CREATING THE NATIONAL EYE CENTER
AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Blindness and poor vision have a tremendous impact on one’s quality
of life, particularly for those living in poverty. Eye diseases usually lead to
the loss of productivity, which in turn lead to the loss of income and low
standards of living. This then limits the patient’s access to quality
healthcare services and deprives their families with educational and other
opportunities. Therefore, blindness leads to shortened life span and loss of
economic productivity of a nation as a whole.

An estimated 2.2 billion people around the world suffer from vision
impairment. Yet the first World Report on Vision by the World Health
Organization (WHO) reveals that half or about1.1 billion do not receive the
care they need for conditions like near and far sightedness, glaucoma, and
cataracts}.

It is the overall vision of the Philippines’ National Prevention of
Blindness Program that all Filipinos shall enjoy the right to sight by year
2020. To achieve this, the State commits to providing access to quality eye
care services, strengthen partnerships with stakeholders to eliminate
avoidable blindness, empower communities to promote eye health, and to
work towards the preservation and restoration of sight of indigent Filipinos
as a strategy in poverty alleviation? As we reach 2020, the country’s

' World Health Organization. 2019. “World Report on Vision”
* Department of Health (DOH) Administrative Order 2013-0010.



Prevention of Blindness Program is revamped with the issuance of revised
policies, aligning the program with Universal Health Care (UHC) and WHO's
goal of universal eye health, while ensuring that it remains responsive to the
changing trends in blindness and visual impairment.

In the efforts of providing the people quality eye care, this bill seeks to
create the National Eye Center. The proposed institution will specialize in
preventing, treating, and rehabilitating people with eyesight problems and
will undertake research and training on the cure and prevention of eye
diseases. This initiative will help the State in achieving its goal to reduce the
prevalence of avoidable blindness.

In view of the foregoing, the immediate passage of this bill is earnestly

sought.

ALFRED VARGAS


Republic of the Philippines
House of Representatives
Quezon City, Metra Manila

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
Second Regular Session

House Bill No, _7140

INTRODUCED BY
REP. ALFRED VARGAS

AN ACT
CREATING THE NATIONAL EYE CENTER
AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR

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

SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the “National Eye
Center Act.”

SECTION 2. The National Eye Center. - There is hereby created a National
Eye Center, hereinafter referred to as ‘the Center’, which is a quasi-
government institution attached to the Office of the President.

The Center shall have its principal office in Metro Manila, and may have
such branch offices, hospitals, clinics or subsidiaries in other areas in the
Philippines as it may deem proper and necessary.

SECTION 3. Purpose and Objectives. - The Center shall have the following
purpose and objectives:

(a) To specialize in the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, care,
rehabilitation and/or relief of eye and allied diseases;

(b)To promote medical and scientific research relative to the
prevention and treatment of eye and aimed diseases, and to
encourage planning, invention and development of artificial
means of eye support and transplantation;


(c) To conduct fact finding investigations on eye diseases, and
related fields throughout the country or elsewhere, and to report,
publish and disseminate information on eye and other related
diseases;

(d)To finance, sponsor, hold or participate in congresses,
conventions, conferences, seminars, ivoi’l-shops and training
programs on eye diseases and/or related field in the Philippines
or abroad; and

(c) To stimulate the formation of other organizations on the national,
provincial, city, and/or local levels, and to coordinate the various
efforts and activities of each organization for the purpose of
achieving a more effective approach to the common problem
relative to the purposes and objectives enumerated herein.

SECTION 4. Powers and Functions. - For the attainment and/or
furtherance of the above-enumerated purpose and objectives, the Center as
a corporate body acting through its Board of Trustees, shall have the
following powers and functions.

(a) To adopt and use a corporate seal;
(b) To sue and be sued in its corporate name;

(c) To adopt its by-laws rules and regulations as it may deem proper
and necessary for the implementation of the purposes and
objectives of this Act;

(d) To succeed by its corporate name, and to acquire and possess
properties, rights and interests of whatever kind and nature, and
mortgage, pledge, alienate, encumber or otherwise dispose of the
same;

(e) To award, enter into, make, execute, perform and carry out
domestic or foreign contracts of whatever kind and nature;

() To invest in, and purchase or otherwise acquire, own, hold, use,
lease, grant, mortgage, pledge, sell, assign, convey, transfer,
exchange or otherwise deal with, real and/or personal properties
of every kind and nature, including share of stock, bonds, notes,
securities and other evidences of indebtedness or obligations of


other corporations, whether domestic or foreign and whether go
government or private;

(g) To obtain loans, borrow funds and/or arrange financing or credit
assistance of whatever kind and nature from all sources,
Whether domestic or foreign and whatever government or private,
arid mortgage, pledge or otherwise encumber any of its pi
operates and assets for the purpose of securing or guaranteeing
the performance of any obligation it may undertake for itself or
for other entities in which it may be interested;

(h) To levy, assess and collect such fees, charges and assessments
as may be necessary or proper to support, finance and maintain
its operations; and

(i) To exercise such other powers and functions as may be
incidental or necessary to carry out the purposes and objectives
of this Act.

SECTION 5. Board of Trustees. - The Center shall be governed, and its
activities and properties shall be directed, controlled and managed by a
Board of Trustees, hereinafter referred to as the Board, which shall be
composed of a Chairperson and ten (10) members, all of whom shall be
appointed by the President of the Philippines. The Chief Executive Officer of
the Center, who shall be appointed front among the members of the Board
in accordance hereof, shall be the ex-officio Vice Chairperson of the Board.

The members of the Board shall serve for a term of three (3) years, with a
right to hold-over until their respective successors shall have been duly
appointed and qualified. The President of the Philippines may, however,
remove any member of the Board for cause. Whenever a vacancy shall occur
in the Board, the person appointed to fill the vacancy shall hold office for the
unexpired term of the member replaced.

SECTION 6. Powers and Functions of the Board. - The Board shall have
the following powers and functions:

(a) To formulate policies, guide lines and programs to effectively
implement and carry out the purposes and objectives of this Act;

(b) To prescribe, review and revise the amount of the fees, charges,
and assessments levied and collected for the support and
maintenance of the operations of the Center;


(c) To control the management, operation and administration of the
Center;

(d) To promulgate such rules and regulations as may be necessary
or proper for the effective exercise of power and functions as well
as the discharge of the duties, responsibilities of the Center, its
officers and employees;

(e) To authorize such expenditures of the Center as may be
necessary or proper for the effective management, operation and
administration of the Center;

(f) To determine and organize the Center's organizational and
administrative structure or pattern, and to establish and fix,
review, revise and adjust the appropriate compensation scheme
of the officers and employees of the Center, with reason able
allowances, bonuses and other incentives;

(g) To adopt the annual and supplemental budget of receipts and
expenditures of the Center;

(h) To appoint, remove, suspend or otherwise discipline officers of
the Center occupying executive and senior management
positions;

(i) To exercise all the general powers necessary or incidental to the
attainment of the purposes and objectives of this Act, and

i) To do any and all acts as may be necessary or proper for the
attainment of the powers and functions of the Center.

SECTION 7. Seeking Assistance. - 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 the purposes and objectives of this Act.

SECTION 8. Authorization for Grants. - The Center is hereby authorized
to solicit and receive donations, grants, contribution, gifts or endowments
from all sources whether foreign or domestic, and whether government or
private, without the need of securing a permit, approval or registration from

any government agency.


SECTION 9. Books and Accounts. - The books and accounts of the Center
shall be under the charge of a Resident Auditor, subject to periodic auditing
by the Chairman of the Commission on Audit, or his duly authorized
representative.

SECTION 10. Civil Service. - The Center and its officers and employees
shall be covered by the Civil Service Law, rules and regulations.

SECTION 11. Annual Report. - The Center shall render to the President of
the Philippines an annual report on its operations and accomplishments.

SECTION 12. General Corporation. - The provisions of the general
corporation law, insofar as they are not inconsistent with the provisions of
this Act of with the purposes and objectives for which the Center is formed,
shall apply to the Center.

SECTION 13. Effect of Dissolution of the Center. - If for any reason, the
Center is dissolved, properties and assets shall revert to the National
Government for disposition in accordance with law.

SECTION 14. Appropriations. - The amount of One Hundred Million Pesos
(P100,000,000.00) is hereby appropriated for the necessary initial operating
expenses and maintenance of the National Eye Center. Thereafter such sum
as maybe necessary for the continued operation of the Center shall be
included in the annual General Appropriations Act.

SECTION 15. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - Within sixty (60)
days from the effectivity of this Act, the Secretary of the Department of
Health, and other appropriate government agencies, in consultation with
relevant stakeholders, shall promulgate the rules and regulations for the
effective implementation of this Act.

SECTION 16. Separability Clause. - If any provision or part thereof is held
invalid or unconstitutional, the remainder of the law or the provision not
otherwise affected shall remain valid and subsisting.

SECTION 17. Repealing Clause. - All laws, presidential decree or
issuance, executive orders, letter of instruction, administrative order, rule
and regulation contrary to or inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are
hereby repealed, modified, or amended accordingly.

SECTION 18. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after
its publication in the Official Gazette or in two (2) newspapers of general
circulation.


Approved,