“On or before Christmas, bayad na. Or before the clock strikes 12 on New Year’s Eve, fully paid na lahat ng pandemic frontliners natin.”

Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto urges the Duterte administration to settle all outstanding payables to the medical personnel before the year ends.

During a Senate debate for the Department of Health’s 2021 budget, it was reported that over 16,700 healthcare workers have not received their hazard pay ever since the Bayanihan to Heal As One Act was implemented in March.

According to Recto, starting out the following year with no unpaid frontliners should be considered a New Year’s Resolution for the government.

“Ang pangit kung 2021 na, nanga-ngaroling pa rin sila ng hazard pay na matagal na dapat naibigay. All those brave nurses, doctors and other frontliners, wherever they are, should have zero-billing at the start of the year,” he said in a statement. “These are the people who will vaccinate us against the coronavirus next year. Can we not begin the year with zero debts to them?”

On November 16, President Rodrigo Duterte approved the active hazard duty pay and the special risk allowance because of the “need to recognize the heroic and invaluable contributions of our public health workers throughout the country, who bravely and unselfishly risk their lives and health by being at the forefront of the national effort to address the public health emergency.”

Public and private medical health workers are entitled to monetary and non-monetary incentives, as stated in the Bayanihan I and II act. This includes Actual Hazard Duty Pay, Special Risk Allowance, a P1 million grant to those who succumbed to COVID-19, P100,000 for severe or critical cases and P15,000 for mild or moderate infections.

Moreover, Administrative Order No. 35 states that medical frontliners are authorized to receive a hazard pay of P3,000 monthly, whereas a special risk allowance of not more than P5,000 is also given to performing staff.