A party-list lawmaker is proposing to institutionalize a comprehensive health insurance package for public school teachers and grant them an annual medical allowance of PHP7,000.

According to a news release on Monday, Bicol Saro Party-list Rep. Brian Raymund Yamsuan filed House Bill 10990, which seeks to provide Health Maintenance Organization (HMO)-type coverage as a permanent feature of the benefits package of the Department of Education (DepEd) for its current and future teaching staff.

“Our bill also promotes preventive healthcare. With HMO-type benefits, our usually overworked public school teachers would be able to maintain their well-being and get treatment when necessary, without having to worry about mounting medical expenses, long before health concerns become severe or life-threatening,” Yamsuan said.

Yamsuan noted that nearly a million public school teachers in the basic education system would benefit from the measure.

Under the bill, qualified teachers shall receive an annual medical allowance not exceeding PHP7,000 as subsidy to enable the DepEd to procure a contract with an HMO on their behalf.

He said the amount of medical allowance will be reviewed every three years by the DepEd to ensure it remains adequate and aligned with market prices.

“Ang layunin natin sa paghahain ng panukalang batas na ito ay matiyak na ang pagkakaroon ng mas malawak na benepisyong pangkalusugan para sa ating mga public school teachers ay magiging regular at permanenteng bahagi na ng mga benepisyong natatanggap nila mula sa gobyerno (Our goal in filing the bill is to make sure that the grant of expanded healthcare benefits to our public school teachers would be a regular and permanent part of the benefits they are receiving from the government),” he said.

Yamsuan commended DepEd Secretary Sonny Angara for his initiative to pool the allowance starting in 2025 to provide HMO-type benefits for public school teachers.

Under Executive Order No. 64, signed by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Aug. 2, qualified government employees, including 910,434 public school teachers across the country, will receive a medical allowance of PHP7,000 per annum as a subsidy for the availment of HMO-type benefits.

This represents a significant increase from the previous PHP500 medical examination allowance given to teachers in 2020.

“At present, public school teachers do not have the usual paid sick leave benefits enjoyed by other professionals. Thus, when they fall ill, they are faced with a difficult choice: Either report to work despite their condition, potentially worsening their health, or take an unpaid sick leave, which can strain their finances and limit their ability to afford necessary medical care. This is an unjust dilemma no teacher should have to endure,” Yamsuan said.

He emphasized that ensuring access to quality healthcare would create “healthier and happier educators,” ultimately improving the quality of education for students. (PNA)