EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
First Regular Session
SENATE
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S. B. NO.
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Introduced by SENATOR JOEL VILLANUEVA
AN ACT PROVIDING FOR MANDATORY FREE HEALTH 
MAINTENANCE ORGANIZATION (HMO) PLAN COVERAGE TO 
FACULTY AND NON-TEACHING PERSONNEL IN STATE 
UNIVERSITIES AND COLLEGES AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
EXPLANATORY NOTE
Article XIV, Section 5, 
Paragraph (5) of the 1987 Constitution 
mandates that “[t]he State shall assign the highest budgetary priority to 
education and ensure that teaching will attract and retain its rightful share of 
the best available talents through adequate remuneration and other means of 
job satisfaction and fulfillment.” 
Towards this end, one of the efforts 
undertaken by the government is the implementation of an across-the-board 
increase in the salary schedule of civilian government personnel.
However, problems still persist with regard the provision of “adequate 
remuneration and other means of job satisfaction and fulfillment” to faculties 
and non-teaching personnel in state universities and colleges (SUCs). One of 
these problems is in the aspect of healthcare.
If the personnel were to suffer from a debilitating illness, limited 
PhilHealth coverage would only answer a fraction of the cost of treatment and 
the rest would still be shouldered out of the personnel’s pocket. This is 
especially alarming considering a full-time lecturer classified as Instructor 1 in 
a state university usually only receives salary equivalent to Salary Grade 12 
or around Php22,938 per month.
The strain of hundreds of thousands of pesos in hospital bills and their 
meager salaries would definitely take a toll on their standard of living and


quality of life. An emergency of this sort may possibly even put them into 
enormous amounts of debt.
This bill seeks to provide faculty members and regular non-teaching 
personnel of SUCs with free mandatory health coverage provided by health 
maintenance organizations (HMOs). Under this bill, the Board of Regents of 
each s u e  has the authority to decide on the form, coverage and terms of the 
HMO plan without any need of approval from other agencies and/or officers.
A free HMO coverage will not only increase the job satisfaction among 
s u e  personnel, it will also ensure that a healthy pool of faculty and non­
teaching personnel will be able to continuously and rigorously teach and 
shape the minds of younger generations.
The immediate passage of this bill is earnestly sought.
SENATOR JOEL VILLANUEVA


EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
First Regular Session
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'19 JULll A1l:30
SENATE
34G rece.'.'.iu.
S. B. NO.
Introduced by SENATOR JOEL VILLANUEVA
AN ACT PROVIDING FOR MANDATORY FREE HEALTH 
MAINTENANCE ORGANIZATION (HMO) PLAN COVERAGE TO 
FACULTY AND NON-TEACHING PERSONNEL IN STATE 
UNIVERSITIES AND COLLEGES AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
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Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in 
Congress assembled;
SECTION 1. S hort Title. -  This Act shall be known as the “Free Health Card 
for all State Universities and Colleges (SUC) Personnel Act."
SEC. 2. Declaration o f Policy. -  It is hereby the policy of the State to give 
priority to education, science and technology, arts, culture, and sports to 
foster patriotism and nationalism, accelerate social progress, and promote 
total human liberation and development. It is also the policy of the State to 
assign the highest budgetary priority to education and ensure that teaching 
will attract and retain its rightful share of the best available talents through 
adequate remuneration and other means of job satisfaction and fulfillment. 
Towards this end, the State shall establish a In order to protect the welfare of 
teaching and non-teaching personnel, the State shall establish mandatory 
HMO coverage to augment their healthcare coverage in case of health-related 
contingencies.
SEC. 3. M andatory HMO Coverage. -  All SUCs shall provide mandatory 
Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) coverage to all full-time faculty and 
regular non-teaching personnel of State Universities and Colleges (SUCs).
For this purpose, the Board of Regents of each SUC shall have the discretion 
to decide the form, coverage, and terms of the services to be provided by an 
HMO.


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Notwithstanding anything to the contrary, the approval and implementation of 
the mandatory HMO coverage provided under this Act shall not require any 
approval from other agencies or officials.
For the avoidance of doubt, the mandatory HMO coverage provided under 
this Act shall be in addition to the existing health care program provided to all 
government employees through the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation.
SEC. 4. A ppropriations. -  The amounts necessary to carry out the 
provisions of this Act shall be included in the annual General Appropriations 
Act (GAA) under the budgets of the particular SUCs.
SEC. 5. Separability Clause. -  Any portion or provisions of this Act that may 
be declared unconstitutional or invalid shall not have the effect of nullifying 
other portions and provisions hereof as long as such remaining portions or 
provisions can still subsist and be given effect in their entirety.
SEC. 
6. 
Repealing 
Clause. 
-  All 
laws, 
decrees, 
executive orders, 
proclamations and administrative regulations, or any parts thereof inconsistent 
herewith are hereby revoked, repealed or modified accordingly.
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SEC. 7. E ffectivity Clause. -  This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after
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its publication in at least two (2) national papers of general circulation.
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Approved,
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