TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE 
) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
) 
First Regular Session 
) 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
HOUSE BILL No. ________ 
Introduced by REPRESENTATIVE CLAUDINE DIANA D. BAUTISTA-LIM 
AN ACT 
CREATING THE HEALTH EMERGENCY AUXILIARY REINFORCEMENT TEAM 
UNDER THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS 
THEREFOR 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
In 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic struck, the country grappled as its effect 
was felt hard economically, socially and structurally. The crisis exposed deep 
vulnerabilities across sectors, especially our healthcare system. Hospitals were 
overwhelmed by the sudden surge of patients and health workers were stretched 
beyond limits due to staff shortage.   What happened during the pandemic 
underscored a painful truth, that the country is in urgent need of stronger and more 
readily available medical workforce, especially during times of crisis. 
To help bridge this critical gap, particularly in public health emergencies, 
disasters, and sudden health threats, there is a pressing need to establish a corps of 
healthcare volunteers who can be mobilized when demand suddenly arise.  Natural 
disasters, pandemics, and other emergencies often strain our existing personnel. With 
a ready pool of trained volunteers, we can respond more quickly and effectively. 
The creation of this dedicated corps, known as the HEART (Health Emergency 
Auxiliary Response Team), will serve as an invaluable resource to reinforce our 
healthcare system. It will enhance patient care, support existing facilities, and provide 
a structured and trained reserve force that can be deployed immediately when needed. 
The HEART will be composed of untapped but capable pool of individuals eager to 
serve such as licensed but retired or non-practicing health professionals, medical 
graduates and students who have completed their internships, as well as barangay 
health workers and other support staff.   
Apart from strengthening our hospitals, the HEART will also extend support to 
rural and underserved areas where healthcare personnel are scarce, ensuring that 
communities everywhere have access to lifesaving care. Just as importantly, it 
institutionalizes the Filipino spirit of bayanihan by transforming volunteerism into an 
September 10, 2025
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organized force for public health response. By building a corps that is structured, 
trained, and ready to deploy, we equip our nation with resilience against future shocks, 
whether from typhoons, earthquakes, or infectious disease outbreaks. 
This measure has already passed the scrutiny of the 19th Congress and was 
approved on third and final reading. I strongly urge my colleagues to lend their support 
and ensure its passage, so that together we can modernize and strengthen our public 
health system and be better prepared for the challenges ahead. 
REP. CLAUDINE DIANA D. BAUTISTA-LIM 
      DUMPER PTDA Partylist 


TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE 
) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
) 
First Regular Session 
) 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
HOUSE BILL No. ________ 
Introduced by REPRESENTATIVE CLAUDINE DIANA D. BAUTISTA-LIM 
AN ACT 
CREATING THE HEALTH EMERGENCY AUXILIARY REINFORCEMENT TEAM 
UNDER THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH 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 “Health Emergency 
Auxiliary Reinforcement Team (HEART)” Act.  
Sec. 2. Declaration of Policy. – Article II, Section 15 of the Constitution enjoins 
the State to protect and promote the right to health of the people and instill health 
consciousness among them.  Article XIII, Section 11 also provides for the adoption of 
an integrated and comprehensive approach to health development.  The State further 
reiterates its commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly 
SDG 3, which calls on the State to ensure healthy lives and promote the well-being of 
Filipinos at all ages.   
The State recognizes the need for a reserve force of highly skilled and health-
oriented professionals and volunteers who can be mobilized to maintain the capacity 
to meet surges in the demand for additional manpower in the country’s healthcare 
system and provide assistance as needed in times of health crises.  
Pursuant to this, it is the policy of the State to: 
a. Prioritize the health of its citizens whether in the country or overseas by
maintaining a strong and resilient healthcare system at all times that will
immediately, efficiently, and effectively address all potential and actual
public health emergencies; and
b. Promote the spirit of “Bayanihan” and enhance the capacity of the nation to
expand its human health resources in times of disasters, public health
4499


 
emergencies and health threats of both national and local scale through the 
mobilization of the Health Emergency Auxiliary Reinforcement Team.  
 
Sec. 3.  Definition of Terms. – As used in this Act:  
 
a. Allied health professionals refer to professions which are involved with the 
delivery of health or related services such as the identification, evaluation 
and prevention of diseases and disorders, dietary and nutrition services, and 
rehabilitation and health systems management.  Allied health professionals, 
shall include, among others, dental hygienists, diagnostic medical 
sonographers, dietitians, medical technologists, occupational therapists, 
physical therapists, radiographers, respiratory therapists, and speech 
language pathologists;  
 
b. Bayanihan refers to the value of communal unity through helping others to 
achieve a certain goal without expecting anything in return;  
 
c. Deployment refers to the actual movement of workforce to the assigned 
area within a prescribed period;  
 
d. Health Emergency Auxiliary Reinforcement Team refers to a group of 
individual volunteers who are in the field of medicine, nursing, medical 
technology, and other allied health-related fields who are ready to be 
deployed to complement the health workforce in the event of a public health 
emergency and health threat;  
 
e. Health threat refers to a condition, agent, or incident that greatly impacts the 
health that leads to disease, accident, injury, and loss of life;  
 
f. Mobilization refers to the process and procedures for activating, 
assembling, and transporting the needed health workforce to respond to a 
public health emergency and health threat; 
 
g. Mobilization center refers to the establishment where the Health Emergency 
Auxiliary Reinforcement Team shall report upon receipt of the order for 
mobilization, coordinate their mission order and mobilization-related issues 
and concerns, and submit their report upon receipt of the order for 
demobilization;  
 
h. Public health emergency refers to an occurrence that poses an imminent 
threat of an illness or health condition as defined in Republic Act No. 11332, 
otherwise known as Mandatory Reporting of Notifiable Diseases and Health 
Events of Public Health Concern Act, that: 
 
1. Is caused by any of the following:  
i. 
Bio terrorism;  


 
ii. 
Appearance of a novel or previously controlled or eradicated 
infections agent of biological toxin;  
iii. 
A natural disaster;  
iv. 
A chemical attack or accidental release;  
v. 
A nuclear attack or accident; or 
vi. 
An attack or accidental release of radioactive materials;  
 
2. Poses a high probability of any of the following:  
i. 
A large number of deaths in the affected populations; 
ii. 
A large number of serious injuries or long-term disabilities in the 
affected populations;  
iii. 
Widespread exposure to an infectious or toxic agent that poses a 
significant risk of substantial harm to a large number of people in 
the affected population;  
iv. 
International exposure to an infectious or toxic agent that poses a 
significant risk to the health of citizens; or 
v. 
Trade and travel restrictions. 
 
i. Volunteers refer to those who freely register to be members of the HEART.  
 
Sec. 4. Scope. – This Act provides for the organization of the Health 
Emergency Auxiliary Reinforcement Team, hereinafter referred to as the HEART, the 
development of policies, plans, guidelines, and the implementation of actions 
pertaining to the mobilization, services, and protection of the HEART in times of 
disasters, public health emergencies and health threats.  
 
Sec. 5.  Health Emergency Auxiliary Reinforcement Team. – There is 
hereby established a HEART under the Department of Health (DOH) to augment the 
health workforce in times of disasters, public health emergencies and health threats.  
The HEART shall be composed of the following individuals who shall voluntarily 
register with the DOH: 
 
a. Licensed professionals in the fields of medicines, nursing, medical technology, 
and other allied health fields including those who are retired and those who are 
no longer practicing their professions in a health facility setting.  All health and 
allied health professional organizations may be tapped for the engagement of 
professionals who are not affiliated in any healthcare facility;  
b. Graduates of medicine and allied health courses and medical students who 
have completed a one-year internship and who have not yet been issued 
licenses to practice their respective professions, but due to the need for their 
services may be issued a limited and special authorization to render medical 
services during public health emergencies or health threats pursuant to 
Republic Act No. 2382, otherwise known as the Medical Act of 1959 or as may 
be amended thereafter; and 
c. Other health support workforce, including barangay health workers, whose 
services are necessary in times of disasters, public health emergencies and 
health threats.  


 
 
Sec. 6. Creation of the HEART Board. – A HEART Board, hereinafter referred 
to as the Board, is hereby created to ensure efficient and effective mobilization of the 
HEART.  It shall be chaired by the DOH and composed of representatives of the 
following, as members:  
 
a. Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG);  
b. Department of National Defense (DND);  
c. Commission on Higher Education (CHED);  
d. Professional Regulatory Commission (PRC); 
e. Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP);  
f. Office of the Civil Defense (OCD); and 
g. One Representative from a non-governmental health professional 
organization.  
 
The members of the Board shall designate a representative, with a rank not 
lower than Assistant Secretary or its equivalent, to represent their respective offices in 
the Board: Provided, That the representative must be fully authorized to decide on 
behalf of the member-agency.  
 
The AFP shall designate a representative from the Office of the Surgeon 
General with a rank not lower than Colonel as its Board representative.  
 
The representative from a non-governmental health professional organization 
shall have a two (2) – year term of office. The Board shall select the representative 
based on guidelines it shall promulgate: Provided, That, the non-governmental health 
organization is national in scope and has a good track record in providing emergency 
health services.  
 
The Board shall establish close coordination with the National Disaster Risk 
Reduction and Management Council and the Philippine National Volunteer Service 
Coordinating Agency.  It may call upon any government office or instrumentality, 
including government-owned or controlled corporations (GOCCs) and local 
government units (LGUs), as necessary.  The Board may likewise coordinate and 
collaborate with non-governmental health organizations and the private sector, 
especially those with actual programs in the delivery of emergency health services.  
 
  
Sec. 7. Powers and Functions of the Board. – The Board shall have the 
following powers and functions:  
 
a. Define 
and 
develop 
the 
organization, 
management, 
mobilization, 
demobilization, and reporting mechanisms, policies, and guidelines for the 
HEART;  
b. Oversee the effective and efficient functioning of the HEART in responding to 
public health emergencies and health threats;  


 
c. Coordinate with concerned national government agencies and other 
stakeholders responding to public health emergencies and health threats; 
d. Conduct regular meetings every quarter or as often as may be necessary in 
times of disasters, during public health emergencies or in the occurrence of 
health threats;  
 
 
Sec. 8. Creation of a HEART Unit. – A HEART Unit shall be created by the 
DOH which shall serve as the secretariat of the Board.  It shall oversee program 
implementation, including the maintenance of the database of information system of 
the HEART.   
 
The DOH shall determine the organizational structure and staffing pattern of 
the HEART Unit subject to the evaluation and approval of the Department of Budget 
and Management (DBM) and in accordance with the civil service laws, rules and 
regulations.  
 
The regional counterparts of the HEART Unit shall be operationalized under 
their respective Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office which shall act 
as mobilization centers in times of disasters, public health emergencies or health 
threats.  
 
Sec. 9. Registration and Training. – The Board shall prescribe a 
comprehensive guideline for the recruitment and selection of a HEART volunteer.  
 
The Board shall also prescribe a training program through written, practical, and 
simulation activities on various aspects of health emergency management and 
response in different health emergency scenarios.  To this end, all volunteers shall 
undergo:  
 
a) Basic training on disaster and health emergency response; and  
b) Skills enhancement activities with relevant agencies in both the public and 
private sectors.  
 
Completion of the basic training or acceptable substitute or equivalent 
certification shall be a requisite for admission to the HEART.  
 
Sec. 10. Registry and Accounting of Members. – HEART Volunteers shall 
be issued with individual registration numbers which shall serve as their identification 
during deployment.  
 
A registry or database that contains the names of the volunteers, their 
registration numbers, address, contact details and other personal information as may 
be deemed necessary, shall be maintained and regularly updated in accordance with 
Republic Act No. 10173, otherwise known as the Data Privacy Act.  
 


 
The HEART Registry or database shall be integrated or linked to existing 
registries such as the National Health Workforce Registry pursuant to Republic Act 
No. 11223, otherwise known as the Universal Health Care Act, Section 25 (c).  
 
All volunteers covered under this Act is required to update their addresses and 
contact details on file through the registry system or database as necessary. 
 
Sec. 11. Mobilization. – The Board shall approve the prompt mobilization of 
the HEART upon receipt of a request from municipal and city mayors and provincial 
governors in connection with public health emergency, threats to public health, or a 
disaster, whether of local or national scale.  The HEART may be mobilized partially or 
in full, as may be necessary.  
 
The Board shall promulgate a mechanism that shall ensure efficient 
implementation of deployment, assignment areas, deployment periods, how 
deployment orders are communicated to each volunteer, and to which mobilization 
center the volunteers will report in accordance with Section 13 on “Accreditation, 
Mobilization, and Protection of Disaster Volunteers and National Service Reserve 
Corps, CSOs and Private Sector” of Republic Act No. 10121, otherwise known as the 
Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010.  
 
Sec. 12. Deployment Order. – The President of the Philippines, upon 
recommendation of the HEART Board through a resolution, may order the nationwide 
mobilization of the HEART to augment the health workforce in case of a declaration of 
a state of public health emergency, state of calamity, and other threats to public health.  
 
Orders of deployment sent to the volunteers’ addresses and through contact 
details on file in the registry system or database shall be sufficient notice for purposes 
of deployment.  
 
Sec. 13. Mobilization Centers. – Mobilization Centers shall be established in 
each province as needed where volunteers shall report to once deployment is ordered.  
 
A mobilization center may be any establishment that can adequately house the 
volunteers, their equipment and supplies during the period of deployment, including 
multipurpose hall, gymnasium, and other similar structures.  
 
The Board shall, in consultation with the local executives, prescribe the location 
of the mobilization centers.  The concerned municipal and city mayors and provincial 
governors shall disseminate information on the location of mobilization centers to the 
widest extent possible.  
 
Sec. 14. Essential Emergency Commodities. – The Board shall ensure that 
the minimum essential individual and organizational commodities and medical 
equipment and supplies shall be procured, stored, and managed to enhance the rapid 


 
transition to readiness required for deployment of HEART teams in the shortest 
possible time.  
 
The Board shall ensure and maintain its capacity to scale up the procurement 
of these equipment and supplies as needed during the period of deployment. 
 
Sec. 15. Incentives. – In recognition and appreciation of the HEART 
volunteers’ service rendered during the actual mobilization, implementing agencies 
may provide volunteers with an allowance as may be determined by the DOH, in 
coordination with DBM, subject to availability of funds, and other existing civil service, 
budgeting, accounting and auditing rules and regulations.  Notwithstanding the 
foregoing, nothing in this Act, shall be construed as creating an employer-employee 
relationship between the government and HEART volunteers.  
 
Sec. 16. Legal Liability and Malpractice Insurance. – No volunteer shall be 
held liable for the death or injury to any person or for the loss of, or damage to the 
property of any person where such death, injury, loss, or damage was proximately 
caused by the circumstance of an actual public health emergency or its subsequent 
conditions.  
 
The Insurance Commission is mandated to develop a specific public health 
emergency malpractice insurance policy or modify existing policies that would protect 
HEART volunteers from any legal liability as provided for by this Section to allow them 
to effectively respond in good faith during public health emergencies.  
 
This Section shall not preclude liability for civil damages because of gross 
negligence, recklessness, or willful misconduct.  
 
 
Sec. 17. Termination of Deployment or Demobilization. – Upon the 
declaration of the President, or as determined by the Board that the need for the 
HEART is no longer necessary, or upon the expiration of the deployment or end of 
mission there being no approves extension thereof, volunteers who are deployed 
pursuant to the declaration of a public calamity, a public health emergency or health 
threat shall be discharged from the performance of HEART duties.  
 
Upon order of the demobilization of the HEART, the deployed volunteers shall 
be reverted to inactive status.  Mobilization centers shall ensure reports on the mission 
are duly submitted and the certificates of service rendered pertaining to the 
deployment are promptly issued.  
 
Sec. 18. Annual Report.  The HEART Unit shall prepare and submit an annual 
report to the Office of the President, through the DOH Secretary, containing the list of 
accomplishments, status of the operations and program implementation of the 
HEART.  
 


 
Sec. 19. Appropriations. – The funds necessary for the initial implementation 
of this Act shall be charged against the available funds of the implementing agencies 
comprising the HEART Board.  Thereafter, the funding shall be included in the budget 
of DOH under the General Appropriations Act.  
 
Sec. 20. Implementing Rules and Regulations. – Within 90 days from the 
effectivity of this Act, the HEART Board shall, in consultation with other stakeholders, 
shall promulgate the necessary rules and regulations to implement this Act.  
 
Sec. 21.  Separability Clause.  – If any provision of this Act is held invalid, the 
other provisions not affected shall remain in full force and effect. 
 
Sec. 22. Repealing Clause. – All laws, decrees, order, rules and regulations, 
or parts thereof, inconsistent with the provisions if this Act are hereby repealed, 
amended or modified accordingly.  
 
Sec. 23. Effectivity. – This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after the 
completion of its publication in the Official Gazette or in at least two (2) newspapers of 
general circulation.  
 
Approved,