Lawmakers from the Makabayan bloc filed a bill seeking to repeal and provide a substitute to the Philippine Nursing Act of 2002 through the means of updated benefits to supplement nurses with the proper support system and allow them to perform their duties effectively.

Makabayan noted that nurses are among the health workers in the country that are often improperly compensated for the work and service that they provide to all Filipinos, leaving them with no choice than to pursue opportunities abroad.

Under the proposed measure, the sector would be provided with a minimum salary equal to salary grade 15 worth P50,000 on top of incentives for overtime pay, on-call pay, hazard pay, night-shift differential, and housing facility allowance among others.

Notably, similar legislation has been proposed both at the House of the Representatives and the Senate both in 19th and 20th Congress but the measures have yet to gain substantial traction in Congress.

In a statement of the matter, Filipino Nurses United (FNU) expressed their support for the prompt passage of the measure as it would help solve the issue of the insufficient number of healthcare workers in the country.

It also expressed that only half of the nurses that register in the Philippines actually remain in the country as most did not find it sustainable to pursue the practice locally.

“The situation is especially alarming as the country continues to face a high burden of tuberculosis, rising dengue cases, HIV infections, non-communicable diseases, and recurring public health emergencies,” FNU said.

The nursing group mentioned that with the repeal of the Philippine Nursing Act, all Filipinos would benefit as nurses would have more motivation to stay with the security of tenure, job salary, and the overall stronger protection that would be afforded to nurses.

For its part, FNU urged the government to increase the budget of the healthcare sector so that quality service could be properly provided without having to overwork nurses.