SIXTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
First Regular Session 
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SENATE 
S. B. No. 81 
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INTRODUCED BY SENATOR ALAN PETER "COMPANERO'~. S. CAYETANO 
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EXPLANATORY NOTE 
Psalm 82:3 tells us to, "Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of 
the poor and the oppressed." 
The 1987 Philippine Constitution affirms 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 people at affordable cost. There shall be priority 
for the needs of the underprivileged, sick, elderly, disabled, women and chiidren."{Section 11, 
Article XIII). 
It also states that the "State shall defend ... The right of children to assistance, 
including proper care and nutrition, and special protection from all forms of neglect, abuse', 
cruelty, exploitation and other conditions prejudicial to their development" (Section 3, Article 
XV). It further acknowledges "the vital role of the youth in nation-building and shall promote 
and protect their physical, moral, spiritual, intellectual and social well- being" (Section 13, 
Article II). 
The Constitution underscores the important duty of the government to provide 
adequate healthcare to all its citizens. Moreover, it underscores the fact that certain sectors of 
our society have to be given priority in their healthcare needs by virtue of their particular 
condition and/or challenging circumstances. Furthermore, this makes manifest the fact that 
access to proper health care is a fundamental right. 
The Convention on the Rights of the Child, to which the Philippines is a State Party, 
provides that States Parties shall ensure to the maximum extent possible the survival and 
development of the child. 
Children, considering their age and limited ability to perform certain tasks, would 
normally need the guidance and care of their parents for their proper growth and development. 
Sadly, there are children - orphaned, abandoned, neglected or voluntary committed children -
who have life's misfortune of being deprived of parents or a healthy family environment, 
usually because of their parents' death or abandonment. Therefore, this specific group of 
children requires extra support and attention, which is essential to their well-being. 
In the absence of their parents or any other responsible and capable relatives, it is, thus, 
the duty of the State to look after the needs of these children. In fact, there is a notion of 
referring to the country as "Motherland" in affirmation that the country is a cradle of comfort 
and protection, imbibing the nurturing and caring qualities of a mother. 


As of 2010, "UNICEF estimates that there are 1.8 million orphans in the Philippines."l In 
2011, the National Statistical Coordination Board reported that there were 2,327 neglected and 
884 abandoned children2• 
This bill emphasizes the welfare and protection needed by the orphaned, abandoned, 
neglected or voluntary committed child by providing for health insurance, hospitalization 
support and annual medical and dental check-ups. These would help ensure the maximum 
survival and development as well as the optimum health of the orphaned, abandoned, 
neglected or voluntary committed child and provide him or her sufficient flexibility to explore 
all his God-given skills and abilities and develop them to the fullest. 
We can start by adequately empowering our institutions in charge of the care of 
orphaned, abandoned, neglected or voluntary committed children to provide a comprehensive 
and sustained healthcare to their wards. With sound minds and healthy bodies, our country's 
orphaned, abandoned, neglected or voluntary committed children will be on the same footing 
as other children with parents or family members who have the ability to realize their personal 
dreams in life and become good and productive citizens of their country. 
The State should build a stable economy and provide decent work for parents and 
families so that they can be financially capable to rear and support their children. The State 
should likewise foster an enabling environment for parents to be gUided on responsible 
parenting. But even as efforts are directed to achieve these, it is likewise the obligation of the 
State to step in now as parens patriae to ensure that children who have no one to care for them 
are given adequate assistance to the maximum extent of available resources. 
In view of the foregoing, immediate approval of this bill is earnestly sought. 
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SENATOR ALAN PETER S. CAYETANO 
1 Philippines: A Country Update, available at http://www.jointcounciLorgJphilippines-a-country-update/ (last accessed June 29, 
2013). 
2Updates on women and men in the Philippines, National Statistical Coordination Board (2012), available 
athttp:((www.nscb.gov.ph(factsheet/pdf12(Final%202012%20Factsheet%200n%20WAM%2Das%20of"">2009Mar2012.pdf (last 
accessed June 29, 2013). 


SIXTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
First Regular Session 
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INTRODUCED BY SENATOR ALAN PETER "COMPANERQ" S. CAYETANO 
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AN ACT 
PROVIDING FOR THE WELFARE AND PROTECTION OF THE ORPHANED, ABANDONED, 
NEGLECTED AND VOlUNTARILY COMMITTED CHILDREN 
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 "Orphaned, Abandoned, 
Neglected or Voluntarily Committed Children's Welfare and Protection Act of 2013. " 
Section 2, Declaration of Policy. It is an acknowledged duty of the State to promote the 
welfare and protect the physical, moral, intellectual, and social well-being of the child. Thus, it 
is the policy of the State to assist, provide and protect the child when his or her parents or 
guardians are unable to provide for the basic needs for his or her proper growth and 
development. Priority then shall be given to the health needs and welfare of the orphaned, 
abandoned, neglected or voluntary committed child. 
Section 3. Definition of Terms. For purposes of this Act, the following terms are defined: 
a.) "Child-Caring Institution" refers to any twenty-four hour resident group care service for 
the physical, mental, social and spiritual well-being of nine or more mentally gifted, 
dependent, orphaned, abandoned, neglected, handicapped or disturbed children that is 
accredited with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD); 
b.) "Guardian" refers to the owner of the child-caring institution and/or any elder in the 
child-caring institution tasked to look after the welfare of the orphaned, abandoned, 
neglected or voluntary committed child; 
c.) "Abandoned Child" refers to a child who has no proper parental care or guardianship, or 
whose parent(s) have deserted him/her for a period of at least three (3) continuous 
months, which include a foundling. 
d.) "Neglected Child' refers to a child whose basic needs have been deliberately 
unattended or inadequately attended within a period of three (3) continuous months. 
Neglect may occur in two (2) ways: 
1. There is physical neglect when the child is malnourished, ill-clad, and without proper 
shelter. A child is unattended when left by himself/herself without proper provisions 
and/or without proper supervision. 


2. There is emotional neglect when the child is maltreated, raped, seduced, exploited, 
overworked, or made to work under conditions not conducive to good health; or is 
made to beg in the streets or public places; or when children are in moral danger, or 
exposed to gambling, prostitution, and other vices. 
e.) "Voluntarily Committed Child' is one whose parent(s) or legal guardian knowingly and 
willingly relinquished parental authority to the DSWD or to any duly accredited child-
placement or child-caring agency or institution. 
f.) "Hospitalization" refers to the event of the orphaned, abandoned, neglected or 
voluntary committed child necessitating medical care in a hospital, whether inpatient or 
outpatient. 
Section 4. Coverage. All orphaned, abandoned, neglected or voluntary committed children, 
under the care of child-caring institutions, whether public or private, with a reputable track 
record in participating and contributing to the betterment of the minor orphaned, abandoned, 
neglected or voluntary committed children shall be covered by the provisions of this Act. 
~ection 5. Insurance. The Government of the Philippines shall provide for the contributions 
of every, in accordance with Section 4 of this Act, to the National Health Insurance Program to 
qualify for the insurance benefits provided by the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation 
(Philhealth). A separate portion in the annual budget of the DSWD shall be allocated for the 
payment of the Phil health premiums of the orphaned, abandoned, neglected or voluntary 
committed children in child-caring institutions. 
Section 6. Hospitalization. In the event that the hospitalization of the orphaned, 
abandoned, neglected or voluntary committed child is necessary to his or her health and well-
being, the child-caring institution must immediately attend to such need, The hospitalization 
bill of the orphaned, abandoned, neglected or voluntary committed child shall be paid by the 
State through the DSWD, A special fund in the amount of at least ONE HUNDRED MILLION 
PESOS (Phpl00,000,000,00) shall be set aside annually by the DSWD for the payment of such 
hospitalization expenses, 
Section 7. Annual Check-Ups. The child-caring institution shall ensure that the orphaned" 
abandoned, neglected or voluntary committed children under its care and custody shall 
undergo annual medical and, semi-annual dental check~ups in any accredited medical and 
dental facilities and hospitals, Such dental and medical annual check-ups shall be provided to 
them for free in public dental and medical facilities including hospitals, upon presentation of a 
certification and request from the DSWD, 
Section 8. Incentives to local Government Units. The National Government shall grant 
additional incentives to local government units which implement a counterpart Program. 
Section 9. Implementing Rules and Regulations. The (DSWD) in consultation with the 
Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), nongovernment organizations (NGO's) 
and other agencies deemed necessary to consult, shall issue the Implementing Rules and 
Regulations (IRR) within ninety (90) days after the approval of this Act. 
Section 10. Separability Clause, If any provision of this Act is declared unconstitutional, the 
same shall not affect the validity and effectivity of the other provisions hereof. 


Section 11. Repealing Clause. All laws, decrees, orders, issuances or portions thereof, which 
are inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or modified accordingly. 
Section 12. Effectivity. This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in two 
(2) national newspapers of general circulation, 
Approved,