President Rodrigo Roa Duterte signed into law two bills that
institutionalize the Malasakit Centers and postpone the May 2020 barangay and
Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections to December 2022. A ceremonial signing was
held in MalacaΓ±ang on Tuesday, December 3.
In his speech, the President said he is “elated and grateful”
with the two laws, which he called “vital in realizing meaningful and lasting
reform for the good of our nation.”
The two laws, which are the first to be passed in the 18th
Congress, were both major items in the legislative agenda of Senator
Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go during the campaign period. The bills that the
Senator filed in July, right after assuming office, served as bases for the two
laws.
Considered as a landmark piece of legislation, Republic Act No.
11463, otherwise known as the Malasakit Center Act of 2019, mandates the
establishment of Malasakit Centers in 73 hospitals that are run by the
Department of Health (DOH) all over the country and in the Philippine General
Hospital in Manila.
“The Malasakit Center is one of the solutions the Duterte
government has developed to provide quick and quality access to healthcare to
all Filipinos, regardless of their age, sex, ethnic background, religion and
political affiliation,” Go said in his past statements.
The Malasakit Center, intended to be a one-stop shop,
consolidates the financial assistance that patients may apply for from four
government agencies, namely, the DOH, Philippine Health Insurance Corporation
(PhilHealth), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and
Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO).
“With the Malasakit Center Act in place to complement the
Universal Health Care Law, we are a step closer towards making quality health
care more accessible and affordable for all Filipinos, especially the indigent
and poor patients in need of medical assistance from the government,” Go said.
“Pera niyo po ito. Ibinabalik lang sa inyo sa pamamagitan ng
mabilis, maayos at maaasahang serbisyong medikal para sa lahat ng Pilipino,” he
said.Wednesday
President Duterte himself credited Go on several occasions for
giving him the idea of opening Malasakit Centers, when Go was still the Special
Assistant to the President.
Go sponsored the Malasakit Center Bill in the Senate, while his
bill on the postponement of the village elections were consolidated with the
bills of other senators.
Republic Act No. 11462, meanwhile, sets the next barangay and SK
elections from the second Monday of May 2020 to December 5, 2022, and then on
the first Monday of December 2025 and every three years thereafter. The law
extends the term of the current barangay and SK officials from two years to
four years and a half.
“Mga barangays natin ang pinaka-frontline ng ating gobyerno sa
paghahatid ng serbisyo at sa kampanya natin laban sa iligal na droga at
kriminalidad. Kaya dapat lang na mabigyan natin sila ng oportunidad at sapat na
oras upang makapagpatupad ng kani-kanilang mga programa at proyekto,” Go explained.
The President asked Congress to prioritize both bills when he
delivered his fourth State of the Nation Address last July 22, 2019.
