Bill revives 'flawed' idea of creating OFW hospital

MANILA, Philippines - Another lawmaker has proposed the establishment of a hospital that would specifically cater to the medical needs of overseas Filipino workers and their dependents, never mind if such an idea has already been shot down by migrant groups for being flawed. Rep. Diosdado “Dato" M. Arroyo (1st District, Camarines Sur), author of House Bill 6297, said that his proposal aims to create a special hospital that would be known as the Migrant Workers Hospital. The special hospital, he said, shall be under the supervision and control of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) and shall provide for “comprehensive services" to all migrant workers who are OWWA contributors, including their dependents. It shall also conduct medical examinations to ensure the physical and mental capability of all OFWs who have an approved job order. But Arroyo said the hospital shall just “complement" the present package of health services provided by the OWWA so that a more comprehensive health package can be given to OFWs and their dependents. Under the bill, the Migrant Workers Hospital shall be administered by a board to be composed of the Department of Labor and Employment secretary as ex-officio chairman and the OWWA administrator as ex-Officio vice chairman. The lawmaker said there is an “urgent need" to establish such a medical facility because majority of repatriated OFWs suffer from poor health conditions. “These OFWs need immediate medical attention or hospital confinement due to various physical or mental illnesses sustained abroad," Arroyo said in a statement. The bill is currently pending at the House Committee on Health. A waste of money Migrant workers' advocacy groups, however, have already shot down a similar Senate proposal. The Senate proposal to create a Migrant Workers’ Hospital is contained in a consolidated version of Senate Bill No. 421 filed by Sen. Jinggoy Estrada and Senate Bill No. 1867 filed by Sen. Manuelito Lapid, which four Senate committees endorsed for floor deliberation last July 2008. “We still don't see the need for an OFW hospital," said Ellene Sana, executive director of the Center for Migrant Advocacy, in a previous interview. Instead, the migrant leader said the government should enhance and improve the Philippine health care system – in the process maximizing existing OFW programs offered by the Philhealth, Social Security System, and OWWA. Father Savino Bernardi of the Apostleship of the Sea (AOS), which also helps OFWs who are in trouble, has said that the intention of such bills may be “laudable" but the proposal itself is flawed. “A hospital is a waste of money, it is not cheap, spend the money on proper assistance to OFWs," he said. Some migrant workers' groups have advocated for an OFW hospital in the past, but realized that it was a bad idea because if the hospital is built in Metro Manila, only those in or near the capital region would benefit. "An OFW hospital based in Manila would be useless to those in the provinces because they would have to spend a lot of money for transportation. Why waste money going to Manila when one can go to a hospital accredited by PhilHealth in one's province?" an OFW based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, has said. Even Lorna O. Fajardo, then acting president and chief executive officer of PhilHealth, objected to the Senate proposal. “It would be more sensible to use the money intended for the proposed hospital to augment existing medical facilities run by the government," she said during a hearing of the Senate committees on health and labor.- GMANews.TV