APPARENTLY infused with a sense of urgency as its new leadership buckled down to work after getting a long list of priority measures from the President’s third State of the Nation Address, the House of Representatives on Tuesday approved several measures on third and final reading.
These included a ban on the privatization of public hospitals and health facilities; a bill requiring the planting of trees for any construction of residential, commercial industrial and public buildings; and the extension for another 25 years of the telecommunication franchise granted to the Iglesia ni Cristo (INC).
Anti-privatization
With 218 votes, members of the lower chamber approved House Bill 7437 prohibiting the privatization and corporatization of all public hospitals, public health facilities and public health services in the country.
House Bill 7437 or the “Anti-Privatization of Public Hospitals, Health Facilities and Health Services Act” seeks to address the inaccessibility and inequality in health care brought about by the privatization of public health services.
The bill enables indigent patients to access quality health care in public hospitals, public health facilities and public health services.
Under the bill, at least 90 percent of the total bed capacity of all public hospitals should be allotted to indigent patients.
It also improves hospital and health care services without resorting to privatization.
The measures defines privatization as the process in which non-government actors become increasingly involved in the financing and provision of health care services which includes: outright sale, public-private partnership; corporatization; contracting out of equipment; joint venture; franchising; management control and corporatization; leasing and user charges.
The bill provides liability and accountability to any person who initiates, causes and approves the privatization of hospitals, health facilities and health services
The bill penalizes violators with a fine ranging from P100,000 to P800,000 and suspension to removal from public office.
Planting of trees
In a move to mitigate the effects of climate change and preserve the environment, the chamber approved on third and final reading House Bill 7373 which seeks to require the planting of trees for any construction of residential, commercial industrial and public buildings.
The proposed “Green Building Act,” mandates all applicants for building permits of residential, commercial, industrial and public development projects to submit a Tree Planting Plan (TPP), in addition to other requirements imposed by local government units.
Any person, firm or corporation, or department, office, bureau agency or government instrumentality intending to construct, alter, repair, or convert any building or structure, shall be required to set aside and properly maintain areas adequate for planting and maintaining trees and flora in said property.
The TPP shall contain the following: total area of the project; indicative lay-out of the area or areas to be planted; number of trees to be planted, taking into account the ratio of at least one tree for every 500 square meters for commercial or industrial projects or one tree for every 250 square meters for housing development projects; species to be planted; and construction and design of said areas for trees and flora, which shall give emphasis to the facade of the structure and all communal areas.
The TPP shall give preference to indigenous species of trees, taking into account the location, climate and topography of the area.
Within 60 days from the effectivity of the Act, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), in coordination with the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the Department of Agriculture (DA), shall issue the necessary implementing rules and regulations to carry out the objectives of this Act.
INC franchise
Also approved on third and final reading is House Bill 7753 extending for another 25 years the franchise granted to the Iglesia ni Cristo (INC).
HB 7753 amends Republic Act 4439 or an act granting the INC a franchise to establish radio stations for private telecommunications as amended.
The bill allows INC to to carry on and operate private telecommunications or electronic communication services.
The measure also accords to the grantee any advantage, favor, privilege, exemption, exception or conditions granted under existing franchises, or which may hereafter be granted for telecommunications.
The bill, meanwhile, requires the grantee to submit an annual report to the Congress of the Philippines on its compliance with the terms and conditions of the franchise and its operations on or before April 30 of every year during the term of the franchise.
It also provides penalty of P500 per working day of non-compliance in the submission of its annual report to Congress.
National Bible Day
The House of Representatives also approved on third and final reading House Bill 7544, which celebrates “National Bible Day” every last Monday of January.
The bill calls on all Christians throughout the country to unite and celebrate the Bible as the cradle of Christian faith during the special working holiday.
Based on the 2015 data of the Philippine Statistics Authority, about 90 percent of Filipinos are Christians making the Philippines the largest Christian nation in the Asia-Pacific region and the fifth largest in the world.
The bill seeks to amend Section 26, Chapter 7, Book 1 of the Administrative Code of 1987, as amended, so that the last Monday of January of every year shall be declared as National Bible Day.
Filipino Sign Language
The Filipino deaf are close to getting their official communication medium with the approval on third reading of House Bill (HB) 7503 or the Filipino Sign Language (FSL) in the House of Representatives.
HB 7503 mandates the state to ensure the Filipino deaf can exercise the right to expression and opinion by requiring the use of FSL in schools, broadcast media, and workplaces when communicating with the deaf.
The bill is in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Under the bill, the Department of Education (DepEd), the Commission on Higher and Technical Education (CHED), the Technical Educational Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda), and all other national and local government agencies involved in the education of the deaf are tasked to henceforth use FSL as the medium of instruction in deaf education.
The FSL shall be taught as a separate subject in the curriculum of deaf learners. The reading and writing of Filipino, as the national language, other Philippine languages, and English shall also be taught to deaf learners.
The University of the Philippines and the Komisyon sa Wikanng Filipino (KWF), professional sign linguistics and linguistic researchers, in collaboration with the CHED, DepEd and the Early Childhood Care and Development Council, shall come up with guidelines in the development of training materials for the education of the deaf. These materials shall be used by all state universities and colleges as well as their teachers and staff.
In the justice system, the FSL shall be the official language of legal interpreting for the deaf in all public hearings, proceedings, and transactions of the courts, quasi-judicial agencies, and other tribunals.
To ensure effective and equal access of the deaf to justice and facilitate their effective roles as direct and indirect participants in the legal system, the courts, quasi-judicial agencies, and other tribunals are hereby mandated to ensure the availability of a qualified sign language interpreter in all proceedings involving the deaf, without prejudice to the right of the deaf to choose other forms or modes of communication, if they so prefer.
Hearings, proceedings and transactions shall include those that are held in police stations and before the Lupong Tagapamayapa as well as preliminary investigations and other initial stages in the court, other quasi-judicial bodies and tribunals.
The FSL also shall be the official language of the deaf employed in the civil service and in all government workplaces. All government offices shall take reasonable measures, including the conduct of awareness and training seminars on the rationale and use of FSL, to encourage its use among deaf and hearing-impaired government employees.
In the health system, state hospitals and all health facilities shall ensure access of the Filipino deaf to health services, including the free provision of FSL interpreters and accessible materials upon the request of deaf patients or individuals who have deaf family members.
The FSL also shall be used as the medium of official communication in all other public transactions, services and facilities.
Likewise, the FSL shall be the language of broadcast media interpreting. The Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas and the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (shall, within one year from the effectivity of the Act, require FSL interpreter insets, compliant with accessibility standards for television, in news and public affairs programs.
The bill mandates the KWF, in coordination with the DepEd Secretary, CHED Chairperson, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority Director-General, Professional Regulation Commission Chairperson, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, the Secretary of Justice, and the heads of other relevant agencies, and in consultation with representatives of the deaf community, teachers with knowledge and experience with the use of FSL in deaf education, the academe, interpreters, and other persons concerned, to promulgate the necessary rules and regulations for the effective implementation of the Act.
https://businessmirror.com.ph/house-of-representatives-okays-on-3rd-reading-ban-on-govt-hospital-privatization-25-year-extension-of-inc-franchise/
These included a ban on the privatization of public hospitals and health facilities; a bill requiring the planting of trees for any construction of residential, commercial industrial and public buildings; and the extension for another 25 years of the telecommunication franchise granted to the Iglesia ni Cristo (INC).
Anti-privatization
With 218 votes, members of the lower chamber approved House Bill 7437 prohibiting the privatization and corporatization of all public hospitals, public health facilities and public health services in the country.
House Bill 7437 or the “Anti-Privatization of Public Hospitals, Health Facilities and Health Services Act” seeks to address the inaccessibility and inequality in health care brought about by the privatization of public health services.
The bill enables indigent patients to access quality health care in public hospitals, public health facilities and public health services.
Under the bill, at least 90 percent of the total bed capacity of all public hospitals should be allotted to indigent patients.
It also improves hospital and health care services without resorting to privatization.
The measures defines privatization as the process in which non-government actors become increasingly involved in the financing and provision of health care services which includes: outright sale, public-private partnership; corporatization; contracting out of equipment; joint venture; franchising; management control and corporatization; leasing and user charges.
The bill provides liability and accountability to any person who initiates, causes and approves the privatization of hospitals, health facilities and health services
The bill penalizes violators with a fine ranging from P100,000 to P800,000 and suspension to removal from public office.
Planting of trees
In a move to mitigate the effects of climate change and preserve the environment, the chamber approved on third and final reading House Bill 7373 which seeks to require the planting of trees for any construction of residential, commercial industrial and public buildings.
The proposed “Green Building Act,” mandates all applicants for building permits of residential, commercial, industrial and public development projects to submit a Tree Planting Plan (TPP), in addition to other requirements imposed by local government units.
Any person, firm or corporation, or department, office, bureau agency or government instrumentality intending to construct, alter, repair, or convert any building or structure, shall be required to set aside and properly maintain areas adequate for planting and maintaining trees and flora in said property.
The TPP shall contain the following: total area of the project; indicative lay-out of the area or areas to be planted; number of trees to be planted, taking into account the ratio of at least one tree for every 500 square meters for commercial or industrial projects or one tree for every 250 square meters for housing development projects; species to be planted; and construction and design of said areas for trees and flora, which shall give emphasis to the facade of the structure and all communal areas.
The TPP shall give preference to indigenous species of trees, taking into account the location, climate and topography of the area.
Within 60 days from the effectivity of the Act, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), in coordination with the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the Department of Agriculture (DA), shall issue the necessary implementing rules and regulations to carry out the objectives of this Act.
INC franchise
Also approved on third and final reading is House Bill 7753 extending for another 25 years the franchise granted to the Iglesia ni Cristo (INC).
HB 7753 amends Republic Act 4439 or an act granting the INC a franchise to establish radio stations for private telecommunications as amended.
The bill allows INC to to carry on and operate private telecommunications or electronic communication services.
The measure also accords to the grantee any advantage, favor, privilege, exemption, exception or conditions granted under existing franchises, or which may hereafter be granted for telecommunications.
The bill, meanwhile, requires the grantee to submit an annual report to the Congress of the Philippines on its compliance with the terms and conditions of the franchise and its operations on or before April 30 of every year during the term of the franchise.
It also provides penalty of P500 per working day of non-compliance in the submission of its annual report to Congress.
National Bible Day
The House of Representatives also approved on third and final reading House Bill 7544, which celebrates “National Bible Day” every last Monday of January.
The bill calls on all Christians throughout the country to unite and celebrate the Bible as the cradle of Christian faith during the special working holiday.
Based on the 2015 data of the Philippine Statistics Authority, about 90 percent of Filipinos are Christians making the Philippines the largest Christian nation in the Asia-Pacific region and the fifth largest in the world.
The bill seeks to amend Section 26, Chapter 7, Book 1 of the Administrative Code of 1987, as amended, so that the last Monday of January of every year shall be declared as National Bible Day.
Filipino Sign Language
The Filipino deaf are close to getting their official communication medium with the approval on third reading of House Bill (HB) 7503 or the Filipino Sign Language (FSL) in the House of Representatives.
HB 7503 mandates the state to ensure the Filipino deaf can exercise the right to expression and opinion by requiring the use of FSL in schools, broadcast media, and workplaces when communicating with the deaf.
The bill is in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Under the bill, the Department of Education (DepEd), the Commission on Higher and Technical Education (CHED), the Technical Educational Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda), and all other national and local government agencies involved in the education of the deaf are tasked to henceforth use FSL as the medium of instruction in deaf education.
The FSL shall be taught as a separate subject in the curriculum of deaf learners. The reading and writing of Filipino, as the national language, other Philippine languages, and English shall also be taught to deaf learners.
The University of the Philippines and the Komisyon sa Wikanng Filipino (KWF), professional sign linguistics and linguistic researchers, in collaboration with the CHED, DepEd and the Early Childhood Care and Development Council, shall come up with guidelines in the development of training materials for the education of the deaf. These materials shall be used by all state universities and colleges as well as their teachers and staff.
In the justice system, the FSL shall be the official language of legal interpreting for the deaf in all public hearings, proceedings, and transactions of the courts, quasi-judicial agencies, and other tribunals.
To ensure effective and equal access of the deaf to justice and facilitate their effective roles as direct and indirect participants in the legal system, the courts, quasi-judicial agencies, and other tribunals are hereby mandated to ensure the availability of a qualified sign language interpreter in all proceedings involving the deaf, without prejudice to the right of the deaf to choose other forms or modes of communication, if they so prefer.
Hearings, proceedings and transactions shall include those that are held in police stations and before the Lupong Tagapamayapa as well as preliminary investigations and other initial stages in the court, other quasi-judicial bodies and tribunals.
The FSL also shall be the official language of the deaf employed in the civil service and in all government workplaces. All government offices shall take reasonable measures, including the conduct of awareness and training seminars on the rationale and use of FSL, to encourage its use among deaf and hearing-impaired government employees.
In the health system, state hospitals and all health facilities shall ensure access of the Filipino deaf to health services, including the free provision of FSL interpreters and accessible materials upon the request of deaf patients or individuals who have deaf family members.
The FSL also shall be used as the medium of official communication in all other public transactions, services and facilities.
Likewise, the FSL shall be the language of broadcast media interpreting. The Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas and the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (shall, within one year from the effectivity of the Act, require FSL interpreter insets, compliant with accessibility standards for television, in news and public affairs programs.
The bill mandates the KWF, in coordination with the DepEd Secretary, CHED Chairperson, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority Director-General, Professional Regulation Commission Chairperson, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, the Secretary of Justice, and the heads of other relevant agencies, and in consultation with representatives of the deaf community, teachers with knowledge and experience with the use of FSL in deaf education, the academe, interpreters, and other persons concerned, to promulgate the necessary rules and regulations for the effective implementation of the Act.
https://businessmirror.com.ph/house-of-representatives-okays-on-3rd-reading-ban-on-govt-hospital-privatization-25-year-extension-of-inc-franchise/
