DOH says 38% of its budget under Bayanihan 2 will be for healthcare workers

MANILA, Philippines — Thirty-eight percent of the Department of Health (DOH) budget under the proposed Bayanihan to Recover As One Act or Bayanihan 2 will be allocated for healthcare workers to be deployed in the fight against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), the health department’s spokesperson said Saturday.

“Mga about 38% po ng ating pondo na iyan ay para sa human resources for health,” DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said in the Laging Handa press briefing.

(Around 38 percent of our funds will be for human resources for health.)

“We like to continue on with the deployment of doctors, nurses, midwives and other healthcare professionals,” she added.

Vergeire also noted that part of the DOH’s fund under Bayanihan 2 will also be used for public health programs that need support.

“Mayroon din po tayong programa diyan o budget (We also have a program or budget) for the vaccine for COVID-19 and of course the other vaccines that we need for the national immunization program,” the DOH spokesperson said.

“At mayroon pong parte diyan na mayroon pa rin po tayong health facilities enhancement pero ito po ay depende sa pag-uusap pa rin po base po sa ating magiging hearings with our budget.”

(And we also have a part where we have health facilities enhancement, but that will depend on the discussions based on the upcoming hearings with our budget.)

Previously, the DOH said that of the proposed P165 billion budget for Bayanihan 2, P53.48 billion will be “for the support of healthcare workers, sustaining the drive of the DOH and keep healthcare workers protected while at the same time preventing the influx of patients into hospitals.”

As of Saturday, the Philippines recorded 234,570 COVID-19 cases with 161,668 recoveries and 3,790 deaths.

/MUF