= REPRESS
€ RERNESE,,

“VT oct 2013
vat: 4 Hal PH,

Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SIXTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. __31'72

Introduced by: Hon. Angelina “Helen” D.L. Tan, M.D.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

Article XIII, Section 11 of the 1987 Constitution provides 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 underprivileged, sick, elderly,
disabled, women, and children. ‘The State shall endeavor to provide free medical care to
paupers’

‘The Constitution also states in Article XV, Section 4 that, "The family has the duty to
care for its elderly members but the State may also do so through just programs of social
security."

Republic Act 9994 or the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010 provides an array of
benefits, privileges and assistance to senior citizens such as a twenty-percent (20%)
discount and exemption from the value-added tax (VAT), if applicable, on the sale of some
goods and services; death benefit assistance; educational assistance; free medical and
dental services; and exemption from training fees for socioeconomic programs, among
others.

Italso grants indigent senior citizens additional privileges such as free vaccines, social
pension and mandatory Philhealth coverage. An “indigent senior citizen” is defined under
the law as any elderly who is frail, sickly or with disability, and without pension or
permanent source of income, compensation or financial assistance from his/her relatives
to support his/her basic needs, as determined by the Department of Social Welfare and
Development (DSWD) in consultation with the National Coordinating and Monitoring
Board.

Said definition excludes senior citizens who are not sick or disabled and who have
pension or other sources of income but who are nonetheless in dire need of additional
government assistance in the face of steep price of basic commodities and medical services.

This measure seeks to make a more inclusive definition of “indigent senior citizen” by
removing the physical requirements and requiring that financial assistance by a senior
citizen’s relatives should be adequate and regular. Hence, more senior citizens will feel
more secure during the remaining years of their lives because of the guarantee that they
will have the ready access to financial assistance and health services.

In view thereof, approval of this bill is earnestly sought.

Lin

ANGELINA “HELEN” D.L. TAN, M.D.
4% District, Quezon


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SIXTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

3172

HOUSE BILL NO.

Introduced by: Hon. Angelina “Helen” D.L. Tan, M.D.

AN ACT
AMENDING SECTION 2, SUB-PARAGRAPH H OF REPUBLIC ACT NO. 7432, AS
AMENDED BY REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9994, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE “EXPANDED
SENIOR CITIZENS ACT OF 2010”

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

SECTION 1. Section 2, sub-paragraph h of Republic Act No. 7432, as amended, is
hereby further amended to read as follows:

“SEC. 2. Definition of terms. - For purposes of this Act, these terms are defined as
follows:

XXX

“(h) Indigent senior citizen, refers to any elderly who is [frail, sickly or with disability,
and] without pension or permanent source of income, compensation or REGULAR AND
APPROPRIATE financial assistance from his/her relatives to support his/her basic needs,
as determined by the Department of Social Welfare and development (DSWD) in
consultation with the National Coordinating and Monitoring Board."

SEC. 2. Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, executive orders, rules and regulations, or
parts thereof, which are inconsistent with this Act are hereby repealed, amended or
modified accordingly.

SEC. 3. 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,