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PZ oare 04 AUG 205

Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
‘Quezon City

20° CONGRESS
Ist Regular Session

HOUSE BILL. no295 7

Introduced by REPRESENTATIVE JENNIFER A. LAGBAS

EXPLANATORY NOTE

‘The 1987 Constitution mandates the State to promote social justice in all phases of national development!
and to give priority to the needs of the underprivileged, particularly the elderly, women, children, and
persons with disabilities (PWDs),* Republic Act No. 7277, as amended, otherwise known as the Magna
Carta for Persons with Disabilities, likewise affirms the State’s obligation to ensure the rehabilitation,
self-development, and integration of PWDs into mainstream society.?

Despite these impramatur, many PWDs across the Philippines continue to experience significant social
and economic exclusion. One of the most pressing challenges they face is the added cost of living with a
disability, which includes expenses for assistive devices, transportation, maintenance medication, personal
assistance, therapy, and specialized nutrition. These costs are not only persistent but also serve as real
barriers to education, employment, health care, and community participation.

While some local government units (LGUs) provide financial assistance to registered PWDs, these
programs are not uniformly available nationwide. Access to support is highly dependent on the resources
and priorities of individual LGUs, resulting in unequal and inconsistent implementation of
disability-related assistance. This situation leaves many PWDs in poorer or underserved areas without any
form of financial support.

According to the National Council on Disability Affairs, the number of registered PWDs in the country
has now reached more than 2.5 million as of June 2025, based on data from the Department of Health.
‘This represents a 35 percent increase from over 1.8 million registered PWDs in June 2024 The increase

! Const. art. I, see. 10.
° Const., art. XIII, see. 11.

* An Act Providing for the Rehabilitation, Self-Development and Self-Reliance of Disabled Person and Their
Integration into the Mainstream of Society and for Other Purposes [Magna Carta for Disabled Persons), Republic
‘Act No. 7277, § 2(a) (1992) (as amended).

“Philippine Daily Inquirer, “Registered PWDs in PH now at 2.5M,” inquirer.net, June 19, 2025,

‘buns/newsinfb inquirernet/207206 Sregistereduds-in-phsnow.2.5m (accessed July 27, 2025).

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reflects the success of improved registration efforts, but it also highlights the urgent need for a national
‘support framework to address the growing needs of the PWD community.

This bill seeks to address these gaps through the establishment of a nationally administered Disability
Support Allowance Program, anchored on a human rights-based approach to disability. It institutionalizes
a monthly financial allowance for eligible PWDs to help cover disability-related costs, beginning with
children and adults with significant disabilities and eventually expanding to cover all income-cligible
PWDs, including those who are employed but still face additional costs due to their disability.

In view of the foregoing, the passage of this measure is eamnestly sought.

HON. nw, LAGBAS

Representative
First District, Misamis Oriental


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
‘Quezon City

20" CONGRESS
Ist Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. 295 7

Introduced by REPRESENTATIVE JENNIFER A. LAGBAS

AN ACT
PROVIDING FOR THE DISABILITY SUPPORT ALLOWANCE FOR PERSONS WITH
DISABILITIES, APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

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 “Disability Support Allowance for Persons
with Disabilities Act.”

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. — It is the declared policy of the State to adopt the generally accepted
principles of intemational law as part of the law of the land.

It is also vital that the State advances social justice 1 end poverty in all its forms, particularly the
historical deprivation of support required by persons with disabilities (PWDs) for their effective inclusion
and full participation in the society.

To attain a just and dynamic social order that will ensure prosperity and free the people from poverty
through policies that will provide adequate social services, a rising standard of living, and an improved
quality of life for all, as well as policies that will promote full employment, the State shall undertake to
develop social protection programs such as the granting of disability support allowances to PWDs as
recognition of the additional costs associated with the disability,

SEC. 3. Definition of Terms. — For purposes of this Act, the following terms are defined as follows:

8) Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) ~ sball refer to those who have long-term physical, mental,
intellectual, or sensory impairments that, in interaction with various barriers, may hinder their full
and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others.

Persons who may fall under this definition are, but not limited to, the following: persons with
psychosocial disability, persons with autism, persons with down syndrome, persons who are
blind, persons with low vision, persons who are hard of hearing, deaf, person with rare diseases,


and all other persous who will be certified under the disability assessment and determination
system;

') Disability - shall refer to an evolving concept that results from the interaction between persons
with impairment and attitudinal and environmental barriers that hinders their full and effective
participation in society on an equal basis with others;

©) Barriers - shall refer to anything that hinders PWDs from enjoying or exercising all human rights
and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural, civic, or any other field, on
an equal basis with others, Barriers in all its forms encompass inaccessible physical environments
and transportation; the unavailability of assistive devices and technologies; inaccessible
information, both in form and content; non-adapted means of communication; gaps in service
delivery, such as unavailability of personal assistance and sign language interpretation service;
discrimination, including denial of reasonable accommodation; attitudes, prejudice and stigma in
society; programs, policies and laws inftinging the rights of persons with disabilities as
recognized under the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD);

4) Reasonable Accommodation - shall refer to necessary and appropriate modifications and
adjustments not imposing a disproportionate or undue burden, where needed in a particular case,
to ensure to PWDs the enjoyment or exercise on an equal basis with others of all human rights
and fundamental freedoms;

©) Progressive Realization ~ shall refer to undertaking measures to the maximum of its available
resources and, where needed, within the framework of intemational cooperation, with a view to
achieving progressively the full realization of these rights, without prejudice to those obligations
contained in the CRPD that are immediately applicable according to international law;

£) Disability Assessment and Determination - sball refer to the process by which the disability of an.
individual is officially recognized for the purpose of eligibility determination to diverse
entitlements. It is based on a human rights model of disability, with a focus on functional
limitations, support requirements and barriers restricting participation;

8) Auxiliary Aids and Services - shall refer to those referred under Republic Act No. 7227, otherwise
known as the Magna Carta for Persons with Disabilities,” as amended;

h) Personal Assistance - shall refer to all forms of live assistance and intermediaries, including
guides, readers, and professional sign language interpreters, to facilitate accessibility to buildings
and other facilities open to the public; and

i) Registered PWDs - shall refer to any individuals who are duly registered in their respective
localities as PWDs.

SEC. 4. Coverage. — All PWDs, duly certified as such under the disability assessment and determination
system that is based on a human rights approach, shall be covered by the provisions of this Act.

In line with the progressive realization principle, the priority will initially be given to children with
disabilities and adults with significant disabilities who are facing the highest barriers and disability-related
costs. However, the aim is to eventually cover all registered PWDs who have either no income or a low
evel of income and those who face disability-related costs that negatively affect their adequate standard
of living.

SEC. 5. Disability Support Allowance Program. — A Disability Support Allowance Program shall be
established under the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), in consultation with the
National Council on Disability Affairs and representative organizations of PWDs. The Disability Support
Allowance Program aims to cover disability-related costs of an individual according to what the person
decides is an immediate need, such as, but not limited to, transportation allowance, nutrition, maintenance
medicines, rehabilitation services, and temporary human assistance, among others.


For working-age adults who are unemployed, it will provide a basic income security and will help cover
disability-related costs for finding and keeping work.

‘The initial amount of Two Thousand Pesos (PhP 2,000.00) a month per individual beneficiary is set for
the disability support allowance, which will be indexed to inflation to preserve its impact on the standards
of living and participation of PWDs.

‘SEC. 6. Progressive Rollout, — The Program shall be implemented in three (3) phases:

) Phase 1 - The initial phase of the Disability Support Allowance Program, to be implemented
within three (3) years from the year of implementation, shall prioritize provision of stipends to:
i) Children with disabili
ii) Adults with significant disabilities who are facing the highest barriers and
disability-related costs; and
iii) Persons with disabilities who are recipients of social protection and economic
empowerment programs such as but not limited to, the Pantawid Pamilya Pilipino
Program (4Ps) aud Social Pension for Indigent Senior Citizens
'b) Phase 2 - The second phase of the Program, to be implemented in the next three (3) years, shall
include all registered PWDs in the low-income or no income bracket.
©) Phase 3 - The third phase of the Program, to be implemented in the next three (3) years, shall
include all employed registered PWDs who incur additional disability-related costs,

SEC. 7. Eligibility. — Eligibility to the disability support allowance shall be determined using a Human
Rights Approach-based Disability Assessment and Determination Scheme, which shall be developed by
the DSWD, in consultation with the National Council on Disability Affairs and representatives of
organizations of PWDs, parents of children, youth and adults with intellectual disabilities, and those who
have no capacity to decide for themselves, with the guidance of the Department of Health (DOH) and
World Health Organization (WHO) experts on disability inclusion.

SEC. 8, Disability Data Management System. —To effectively implement the program, a Disability Data
Management System shall be developed and shall be linked to a Community-Based Monitoring System
(CBMS) which aids in the development of poverty-reduction programs from the local to the national
level. Linkage to the National ID System and the DOH Persons with Disability Registry, which is
mirrored with the Philllealth Database System, shall also be done to provide real-time disability data and
subsidized enrollment to PhilHealth insurance.

SEC. 9. Policy on Disability Identification Cards. — The Disability Identification Cards, issued pursuant
to Republic Act No. 7277, otherwise known as the Magna Carta for Persons with Disabilities,” as
amended, along with other relevant laws, administrative issuances, and local ordinances, shall incorporate
the information necessary for the granting of the monthly disability support allowance to eligible PWDs.

SEC. 10. Penal Provisions. — The penalties shall apply to the following:

a) Any person who, through fraud or misrepresentation, applies for or aids in the application for
benefits under this law without being a qualified PWD entitled thereto shall suffer the following
penalties:

i) For the first violation, a fine of not less than Twenty-Five Thousand Pesos (PhP
25,000.00) but not exceeding Fifty Thousand pesos (PhP 50,000.00); and

ii) For any subsequent violation, a fine of not less than Fifty Thousand Pesos (PhP
50,000.00) but not exceeding One Hundred Thousand Pesos (PhP 100,000.00).


b) Any person violating any provision of this Act and its implementing rules and regulations, except
violations pertaining to Subsection (a) of this Section, shall be penalized with a fine of not less than
Fifty Thousand Pesos (PhP 50,000.00) but not exceeding One Hundred Thousand Pesos (PhP
100,000.00).

SEC. 11. Appropriations. — The amount necessary for the implementation of this Act shall be included in
the annual General Appropriations of the year following its enactment into law and thereafter, The initial
amount of which shall be determined by the DSWD, the National Council of Disability Affairs, and
representatives from other major stakeholders, including organizations of PWDs. The allocated budget for
the first year of its operation shall gradually increase in view of progressive realization,

SEC. 12. Implementing Rules and Regulations. — Within ninety (90) days from the effectivity of this Act,
the DSWD, in consultation with the National Council on Disability Affairs, Department of Interior and.
Local Government, DOH, Philippine Statistics Authority, organizations of PWDs, and other relevant
stakeholders from government agencies and non-government organizations, shall issue the necessary rules
and regulations to implement the provisions of this Act.

SEC. 13. Report to Congress. —'The DSWD and National Council on Disability Affairs shall submit an
annual report to Congress about the status of the implementation of this Act for purposes of review and
recommendation of additional measures necessary for the attainment of the objectives of this Act.

SEC. 14. Separabitity Clause. — Any portion of or provision of this Act that may be declared
"unconstitutional or invalid shall not have the effect of nullifying the other portions or provisions hereof as
ong as such remaining portion or provision can still subsist and be given effect in its entirety

SEC. 15. Repeating Clause.— All laws, decrees, orders, rules, and regulations, or other issuances or parts
thereof inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or modified accordingly.

SEC. 16. Effectivity. — This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in the Official
Gazette or any two (2) newspapers of general circulation in the Philippines.

Approved,