Emergency allowance of healthcare workers now 90% paid, says DOH

FILE PHOTO: This photo shows Filipino nurses at the hospital. – The Health Emergency Allowance (HEA) obligation for healthcare workers amounting to P103.5 billion is now 90 percent paid, according to the Department of Health (DOH). | PHOTO: Reuters

MANILA, Philippines — The Health Emergency Allowance (HEA) obligation for healthcare workers amounting to P103.5 billion is now 90 percent paid, the Department of Health (DOH) said on Saturday.

According to DOH, 14.5 million claims from health workers have already been settled, following the release of the remaining P27 billion for the COVID-19 HEAs. It said it recorded in April that P23.4 billion worth of HEA for 4.3 million healthcare workers could not be paid “due to budget constraints.”

The DOH also said that the remaining balance increased to P27 billion after processing and granting more appeals. The Department of Budget and Management released the remaining balance in July after DOH Secretary Teodoro Herbosa said the still unpaid allowances will be disbursed this year.

READ: P27-B COVID-19 allowance for healthcare workers released – DBM

“Ang sobrang bayad na ‘di naman nagamit at siyang isinauli ng PhilHealth ay naging pang pondo para sa HEA ng ating mga health workers. Lumipat po mula sa bangko, papunta sa tao. Sa ngalan ng ating mga COVID-19 frontliners, maraming salamat po,” Herbosa said in a statement.

(The unused excess fund was returned by Philhealth [Philippine Health Insurance] and eventually funded HEA of our health workers. It got transferred from the bank to the people. In the name of our Covid-19 frontliners, thank you so much.)

The DOH likewise noted that 64 percent of the additional P27 billion fund has been released as of Friday, September 20. The fund was intended to cover the payment of 5,039,926 already validated HEA applications and 4,283 COVID-19 Sickness and Death Compensation Claims of healthcare workers.

READ: DOH: Excess PhilHealth funds partly went to health workers’ allowance

As of March 19, the DOH said it disbursed a total of P76.1 billion to fund the HEAs. The amount covered 8,549,207 claims filed from July 1, 2021 to July 20, 2023. It received P19.9 billion for HEAs under the programmed appropriations of the 2024 national budget and P19.7 billion of which was released to eligible health facilities.

The COVID-19 HEAs is based on the Public Health Emergency Benefits and Allowances (PHEBA) for healthcare workers which grants Special Risk Allowance (SRA), compensation for COVID-19 sickness and death, and additional benefits like meals, accommodation, and transportation allowances to them.