MANILA – Some senators on Wednesday said the granting of special risk allowance (SRA) and active hazard pay should not be limited to healthcare workers serving in COVID-19 wards alone, adding that the government should “not play God.”
“We cannot play God here because this is a very serious pandemic and we would like to pay all these people,” Senator Richard Gordon said during a Senate hearing on Wednesday.
He issued this remark as they were discussing the granting of special risk allowance and active hazard pay to healthcare frontliners.
Gordon stressed that all medical workers in hospitals should be paid such benefits since they are exposed to the coronavirus, regardless of whether they are tending to patients in COVID-19 wards.
“Hindi ba toxic ‘yung situation sa ospital? Why are we playing God? Na pagka nandun ‘yung tao, doktor natin, nurse natin, kahit na wala siya sa COVID ward, mae-expose siya. Mae-expose pati pamilya niya,” he added.
Before this, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III told senators that the Department of Health (DOH) releases the SRA and the active hazard pay only to those in COVID-19 wards “as per the provision of the law.”
Duque was referring to the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act or Bayanihan 2, which grants healthcare workers “catering to or in direct” contact with COVID-19 patients such benefits.
But Gordon said this gives the DOH “God-like powers.”
“You’re God. We don’t want to play God. We are assuming – and my colleagues can bear me out on this – we are assuming that COVID respects no boundaries, it respects nobody,” the senator said.
“Kung nasa ospital ka in a pandemic situation, ang assumption, you are exposed,” he added.
According to Gordon, the law should be interpreted “liberally.”
“Once you’re inside the hospital, COVID does not recognize whether you’re vaccinated…even if you’re not working in the COVID area, you can get it. Therefore, the rules should be interpreted liberally,” he said.
Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon agreed with Gordon.
“There should be a liberal interpretation of the benefit because this is a social benefit,” Drilon said.
Duque said that the DOH had actually appealed the inclusion of all healthcare workers when the law was being deliberated on.
“Pinaglaban po namin ‘yan, ng DOH nung pagbuo ng batas. Number one, it’s very difficult to differentiate when we know the COVID virus is airborne,” the health chief said.(©Philippine Daily Inquirer 2021)
