Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

Eighteenth Congress
Second Regular Session

HOUSE BILL No, 8138

Introduced by Honorable Mark O. Go

EXPLANATORY NOTE

On October 21, 2002, RA No. 9173, or the Philippine Nursing Act, was enacted which
provides under Section 32, that “the minimum base pay of nurses working in public health
institutions shall not be lower than salary grade 15 prescribed under Republic Act No. 6758”.
‘The said provision has been the subject of a long-time legal battle, and it was only last October 8,
2019, that the Supreme Court declared the said provision valid, and that the subsequent Joint
Resolution No. 4, dated July 28, 2009 and Executive Order No. 811, dated June 17, 2009, insofar
as they purport to amend or repeal R.A. No. 9173 are void and unconstitutional.

In line with the Court’s ruling, DBM issued Budget Circular 2020-4, which upgraded the
entry level of nurse positions to Salary Grade 15. As a result of the upgrading, the entry level
nurse position now outranks other medical and health services positions in the government,
which require the same, or even higher, qualification standards.

Section 9 of R.A. 6758, or the Compensation and Position Classification Act of 1989,
provides that the Salary Grade assignments for the government positions shall consider the
following factors: (1) the education and experience required to perform the duties and
responsibilities of the positions; (2) the nature and complexity of the work to be performed; (3)
the kind of supervision received; (4) mental and/or physical strain required in the completion of
the work; (5) nature and extent of internal and external relationships; (6) kind of supervision
exercised; (7) decision-making responsibility; (8) responsibility for accuracy of records and
reports; (9) accountability for funds, properties and equipment; and (10) hardship, hazard and
personal risk involved in the job.In addition, RA No. 6758 provides under Section 3(d) that a
review of government compensation rates, taking into account possible erosion in purchasing
power due to inflation and other factors, shall be conducted periodically.

The implementation of the upgraded salary of nurses is a welcome development, albeit
long overdue. However, the same created a wide compensation disparity between nurses and
other medical and health professionals serving in the public sector. The ongoing pandemic shed
light upon the importance, struggles, and dedication of medical and healthcare professionals. Not


only in response to the pandemic, but moving forward, it is essential in maintaining a healthy
Filipino public that we dignify medical and health care professionals with compensation that is
reflective of the qualifications they worked for, the mental and physical strain demanded in
ensuring the health and wellness of our people, and the multitude of risks that goes along with it.

About 17,000 to 22,000 health professionals leave the Philippines annually to work
abroad. This is mainly due to better employment opportunities and higher income abroad. A
recent study on the salary of frontliners revealed that nurses and medical technologists in the
Philippines are paid the lowest among six ASEAN member countries.

Public health is ensured when multiple disciplines come together in practicing their
distinct professional expertise. This bill seeks to adjust the salary grade of other medical and
health professions, in accordance with their respective qualification standards, and in response to
the wage distortion created by the salary upgrade of nurses. With this salary upgrade, we hope to
boost the morale of our existing medical and health service personnel complement, and
encourage competent medical and health professionals to remain in the country and join the civil
service.

In view of the foregoing, the approval of this measure is earnestly sought,


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

Eighteenth Congress
Second Regular Session

HOUSE BILL No. 8188

Introduced by Honorable Mark O. Go

AN ACT UPGRADING THE MINIMUM SALARY OF MEDICAL AND HEALTH
SERVICE PROFESSIONALS

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

SECTION. 1. Declaration of Policy. —Itis the policy of the State to undertake appropriate
health manpower development and research, responsive to the country’s health needs and
programs. To this end, this Act seeks to promote the social and economic well-being of public
health workers, and encourage competent medical professionals to join and remain in
government service.

SEC. 2. Upgrading of Minimum Salary Grade Level. ~ The salary grade of entry-level
Positions in the medical and health service shall be upgraded as follows:

POSITION CURRENT SG LEVEL UPGRADED SG LEVEL
Dentist 14 17
Veterinarian 13 16
Optometrist 12 16
Medical Technologist ul 15
Nutritionist-Dietician ul 15
Occupational Therapist | 11 15
Pharmacist i 15



Physical Therapist mT 15
Psychologist u 15
Radiologic Technologist. | 11 15
Respiratory Therapist 10 14
Midwife 9 u
Medical Laboratory 6 .
Technician

To maintain internal equity, the Salary Grade of higher positions shall be adjusted accordingly.

SEC. 3. Coverage. — This Act shall cover medical and health service positions in all
government hospitals and entities, whether funded by the National Government or the Local
Government Units.

Medical and health service positions in agencies and other government entities exempted
from R.A. no. 6758, as provided in their respective enabling law or charter, and are actually
implementing their respective Compensation and Position Classification System, shall not be
covered under this Act.

SEC. 4. Implementing Rules and Regulations. — The Department of Health and
Department of Budget and Management shall promulgate and issue the Implementing Rules and
Regulations (IRR) necessary to implement this Act within sixty (60) days after its approval,

SEC. 5. Appropriations. ~ The Amount necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act
shall be included in the budgets of the implementing departments/agencies in the annual General
Appropriations Act.

SEC. 6. Separability Clause. — Should any provision of this Act be declared
unconstitutional, the remainder thereof not otherwise affected shall remain in full force and
effect.

SEC.7. Repealing Clause. — All laws, presidential decrees, executive orders,
proclamations or administrative regulations that are inconsistent with the provisions of this Act
are hereby repealed, amended, or modified accordingly.

SEC. 8. Effectivity. — This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in the
Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.

Approved,