Sen. Manuel “Lito” Lapid (Screen grab / Senate PRIB file photo)
MANILA, Philippines — Senator Lito Lapid on Monday filed his top five priority bills which include a proposal to grant a P2,000 monthly social pension for indigent persons with disability (PWD).
Lapid is the second senator to have filed his proposed measures during the opening of the 19th Congress. His five bills are:
-Monthly Social Pension for Indigent Persons with Disability Act
-Free Professional Examinations Act
-Tourist Protection and Assistance Act
-Climate Resilient Agriculture Act
-Medical Bill Transparency Act
In filing the Monthly Social Pension for Indigent Persons with Disability Act, the senator pointed out that many PWDs have no stable source of money for their expenses.
Hence, he is aiming to provide a P2,000 monthly social pension for indigent PWDs.
Meanwhile, indigent Filipinos may benefit from Lapid’s proposed Free Professional Examinations Act, should it become a law, as professional licensure examination fees range from P500 to P10,000.
Considering the welfare of tourists, Lapid is likewise pushing for the establishment of the Tourist Protection and Assistance Task Force which will “serve as the umbrella agency to ensure the adoption of uniform standards on signages, promotion of multilingualism on travel and tourism information, establishment of an assistance system, and the creation of help desks, among others.”
On the other hand, the Climate-Resilient Agriculture Act “aims to contribute to this goal of building a climate-resilient Philippine agricultural sector” as typhoons, landslides, and floods result in billions of agricultural damages.
(Photo courtesy of Sen. Lapid’s office)
Noting that the Philippine healthcare system “has not fully addressed its issue in the medical pricing aspect,” Lapid’s Medical Bill Transparency Act “seeks to prevent unexpected medical bills and inflated out-of-pocket expenses.”
Lapid’s head executive assistant Atty. James Uaminal filed the bills on his behalf.