Health workers say DOH giving false hopes

Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital staff picketed to remind the Department of Health (DOH) that the 10-day deadline for paying their benefits has expired.

According to them, only a few Fabella residents have received special risk allowance (SRA) and do not yet have meals, accommodation, transportation (MAT) allowance, and active hazard duty pay.

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So they have only one request now to Health Secretary Francisco Duque.

“Bumaba na siya (sa puwesto) dahil kung ang iintayin pa niya, ma-clear siya sa COA, hindi mangyayari ‘yon, dahil kung mag-clear man siya sa COA, kaming mga frontliner ay kakasuhan namin siya ng negligence and incompetence,” said Dr. Margarita Esquivel, union president at Fabella.

(He has to step down (in office) because if he has to wait to be cleared in the COA, that will not happen because if he gets cleared, we frontliners will accuse him of negligence and incompetence.)

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It seems that the DOH is not only neglecting the benefit.

“May swabbing daw every 14 days, totoo ba ‘yun? Hindi ‘yun totoo,” said one of them.

(There is swabbing every 14 days? It’s not true.)

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Health workers who face COVID-19 on a daily basis also do not have adequate protection.

Health workers say DOH giving false hopes

Residents of the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) also protested that they are not receiving benefits despite their important role in evaluating COVID-19 transmission.

The DOH admitted that there was a delay due to the validation process.

He said the fund is still looking for the MAT allowance that was only approved to be turned into cash on June 1.

President Rodrigo Duterte once again sided with the DOH.

“Kasi hindi ka basta-basta maggastos. Magbayad ka nang walang basis, mafa-flag ka na naman. The DOH hands are tied and could not give the SRA to all health workers because of the limitations of the law,” said Duterte.

But according to the employees association of St Luke’s Medical Center, the DOH is only complicating the process.

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