Health Passport System Act

TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 25 JUL -3 P5:14 First Regular Session S.B. No. INTRODUCED BY SENATOR ALAN PETER "COMPAÑERO" S. CAYETANO AN ACT ESTABLISHING A NATIONAL HEALTH PASSPORT SYSTEM INTEGRATED WITH THE PHILIPPINE IDENTIFICATION SYSTEM (PHILSYS), STRENGTHENING PRIMARY HEALTHCARE BY MANDATING THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND THE PHILIPPINE HEALTH INSURANCE CORPORATION TO ENSURE THAT EVERY INDIGENT OR DISADVANTAGED FILIPINO CITIZEN RECEIVES, FREE OF CHARGE, A COMPREHENSIVE EXECUTIVE CHECK-UP AT LEAST ONCE A YEAR, APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES EXPLANATORY NOTE Medical record keeping plays an essential role in any healthcare system. For Filipinos in general, it is not a usual practice to keep such documentation - whether of previous check-ups, diagnostic test results, medications, treatments, and procedures done, among others. Thus, assisting Filipinos in record keeping and making medical history available should also be given emphasis and priority by the government. The Health Passport System can help address this gap as its purpose is to provide each Filipino with a document that reflects each individual's full medical history and other relevant data, providing both the medical practitioner and the patient a full picture of the latter's condition. In the event of emergencies, this will also be a handy tool that can be essential in saving lives. Also, medical data recorded in the health passport cautions the patient to be aware of his congenital or hereditary illness consistent with the saying that to be forewarned is to be forearmed. Hence, an individual can make the necessary preparations to prevent further complication of his illness. In addition, couples will know the medical history of his or her partner and give them the chance to take steps to ensure the health of their children. The health passport will also help doctors and dentists monitor if their patients are being compliant with their scheduled health check ups and undergo recommended medical tests. The importance of diagnostic tests may be emphasized by the fact that many suffer from misdiagnosed illnesses due to the absence of proper information. Through these tests, illnesses, medication, and other medical procedures are accurately determined. Recording of the results of these tests to one's health

passport will guide physicians in making proper diagnosis, give other physicians a better perspective of the medical history of the patient, and prevent duplication of tests being done on the same patient. Furthermore, most modern hospitals in the Philippines are already using digitalized results of diagnostics tests, which makes it easier for patients, especially if they have more than one doctor, to look at their medical results. To use the health passport, all the patient has to do is to present it whenever he/she avails of the medical services of any public hospital, clinic, or other medical institutions. This document also intends to assist the doctor examining the patient's medical condition, either in a private or public medical facility. However, the health passport, along with PhilHealth, will not be fully and seamlessly functional if the primary health care system is not established. Moreover, this measure fully harnesses the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) by integrating every Health Passport to the holder's PhilSys Number and, at the holder's option, embedding a machine-readable QR code on the physical or digital PhillD. This is envisioned to streamline enrolment, shorten queues, and fortify data security. For these reasons, more than the provision of the Health Passport System, this bill's objective is to strengthen the primary healthcare system to effect change that is felt by all. Evaluation and monitoring systems will be in place to guarantee that our Rural Health Units will meet the world's standard of primary healthcare. Finally, the bill also institutionalizes an Annual Comprehensive Check-Up Program by mandating the Department of Health and the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation to ensure that all indigent or disadvantaged Filipinos receive a comprehensive executive medical check-up once a year, the results of which will be automatically encoded in the Health Passport. Although universal screening may appear expensive at the beginning, it will ultimately cost far less to detect illnesses early, preventing costly hospitalizations and keeping the population healthier and more productive in the long run. This bill was first filed by this representation during my first term as a District Representative in 2000. More than two decades after, this representation looks forward to seeing this proposed legislation finally come to fruition during this Congress. In view of the foregoing, it is my hope that this measure will be expeditiously passed. Capt ALAN PETER "COMPAÑERO" S. CAYETANO A*

TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES JUL - 3 P5:15 First Regular Session S. B. No. 110 INTRODUCED BY SENATOR ALAN PETER "COMPAÑERO" S. CAYETANO AN ACT ESTABLISHING A NATIONAL HEALTH PASSPORT SYSTEM INTEGRATED WITH THE PHILIPPINE IDENTIFICATION SYSTEM (PHILSYS), STRENGTHENING PRIMARY HEALTHCARE BY MANDATING THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND THE PHILIPPINE HEALTH INSURANCE CORPORATION TO ENSURE THAT EVERY INDIGENT OR DISADVANTAGED FILIPINO CITIZEN RECEIVES, FREE OF CHARGE, A COMPREHENSIVE EXECUTIVE CHECK-UP AT LEAST ONCE A YEAR, APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the "Health Passport

2 System Act".

SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is the policy of the State to protect

and promote the right to health of the people and instil health consciousness among them. The State guarantees universal access to affordable and quality 6 health care services from the government, especially to the underprivileged. Also, the State recognizes the need to adopt an integrated and 8 comprehensive approach to health development, which shall endeavour to make essential goods, health and other social services available to all the people at affordable costs. It is also the policy of the State to promote scientific and technological research and development, foster invention, and utilize scientific knowledge as an effective instrument for the promotion of national progress. This includes the full utilization of the latest technology in the delivery of basic services to Filipinos, including healthcare services. In pursuit of an integrated approach to health development, the State shall harness the Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) created under Republic Act No. 11055 as the foundational digital identity for every Health Passport holder, thereby avoiding duplicative enrolment and ensuring seamless authentication across all public-health facilities.

SECTION 3. National Health Passport System. - Consistent with the

above policies, the Department of Health (DOH), in joint coordination with the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), and the Local Government Units (LGUs), shall design and implement the National Health Passport System.

SECTION 4. Content and Purpose. - For purposes of this Act, the Health

9 Passport shall be the personal record booklet containing: a. A patient's medical and dental history as recorded by a duly-licensed 11. healthcare professional; b. The names of duly-licensed healthcare professionals which the patient consulted, including the date of such consultation; c. Results of laboratory examinations; d. Diagnosis; e. Immunization records; f. Drugs and medical devices prescribed, including the quantity and frequency of intake or use, as the case may be, of the same; g. Information on all medical and health related benefits provided by laws, including benefits from the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth); h. Information regarding the patient's medical rights and privileges under the passport system; and i. Such other details which the DOH may deem appropriate. The Health Passport shall be used as valid identification to avail of free medical services, including diagnostics and treatment, in public hospitals, subject to the guidelines to be set by the DOH. The DICT and DOST may utilize the latest available technology, such as, but not limited to, the use of a Quick Response (QR) Code which shall be linked with permanent PhilHealth membership number and other pertinent details, to implement this Act.

SECTION 5. Integration with the Philippine Identification System

(PhilSys). - The National Health Passport System shall be interoperable with the PhilSys registry so that every Health Passport is linked to the holder's PhilSys Number (PSN) and may be accessed or presented through PhilSys-enabled credentials, physical or digital. The DOH and all other implementing agencies shall verify the PSN prior to the creation of any Health Passport record, to prevent duplicate or fictitious enrolments. Upon the Health Passport holder's option, a machine-readable QR code, or any successor digital platform approved by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), containing a secure Uniform Resource Locator (URL) to the holder's Health Passport record may be printed or embedded on the PhillD. Presentation of said PhillD or its digital equivalent shall constitute full compliance with any requirement to present the Health Passport,

SECTION 6. Authority to Access Passport. - All personal and

health-related information processed under this Act shall be protected in accordance with Republic Act No. 10173, Republic Act No. 11055, and their respective implementing rules and regulations. The DOH, PSA, and DICT shall implement a consent-management mechanism by which data subjects may approve or refuse access to their Health Passport records. In the absence of the relatives, the physician in charge of the patient shall be authorized to review the patient's Health Passport.

SECTION 7. Scope of the Health Passport Program. - All Filipino citizens

shall be entitled to a personal Health Passport, which shall be used for availing of medical services or treatment provided in public or private medical institutions. The parents or legal guardians of children born after the effectivity of this Act shall be required to enroll their children in the Health Passport System program. 14 Failure to provide the child with medical check-ups and immunization shall 15 constitute an act of child abuse or cruelty, punishable under Republic Act No. 7610, otherwise known as the "Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act."

SECTION 8. Procedure. - Cities, municipalities, and Barangays, together

with the DSWD and in coordination with the PSA, shall be responsible for the distribution of health passports.

SECTION 9. Annual Comprehensive Check-Up Program. - The DOH, in

coordination with the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth), the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and all LGUs, shall ensure that every indigent or disadvantaged Filipino citizen receives, at least once per calendar year, a comprehensive executive medical examination free of charge at any public primary healthcare facility. The examination shall cover, as a minimum, physical and dental routine immunizations, and disease assessment, laboratory diagnostics, screenings, as specified in a guideline to be issued by the DOH. The full results of the examination shall be recorded in the individual's Health Passport. The cost of the annual check-up package shall be chargeable to the budget of the DOH and to PhilHealth's relevant benefit packages, with such amounts as may be necessary included in the annual General Appropriations Act.

SECTION 10. Digitization of Public Health Facility Records. - In the

pursuit of seamless and efficient health care service, all public health facilities nationwide, with priority for Rural Health Units, are directed to digitize all medical records and evaluation results. This is to create a shareable database to consolidate all information that will be easily accessible in time of need.

SECTION 11. Senior Citizens Privileges. - All privileges granted to senior

citizens under the Senior Citizen's Act and other laws shall also apply to senior citizens with health passports. Medical institutions shall give priority to senior citizens on their needs.

SECTION 12. Rural Health Units Assessment Report. - DOH shall submit

an initial assessment report to the House of Representatives and the Senate on the status of every Rural Health Unit (RHU) within ninety (90) days of the effectivity of this Act to identify which RHUs do not meet the universal standards for quality primary healthcare.

SECTION 13. Roadmap for the Improvement of Rural Health Units. -

Based on the Rural Health Units Assessment Report, as mandated by the preceding section, the DOH shall likewise prepare a comprehensive roadmap elaborating the recommended steps to improve the quality of primary healthcare. Annually thereafter, an update report pertaining to the progress of the RHUs shall be submitted to the House of Representatives and the Senate for purposes of monitoring and evaluation.

SECTION 14. Implementing Agency. - The DOH, in consultation with the

PSA and PhilHealth, shall promulgate the implementing rules and regulations necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act, and administer this program in coordination with the local government units concerned and other agencies whose functions are bound to affect the implementation of this system. In this connection, the DOH is hereby mandated to conduct further study on this system. The Department shall also assess the capabilities of the health institutions in the local government units as well as the availability of laboratory

SECTION 15. Appropriation. - The sum necessary for the effective

implementation of this Act shall be included in the annual General Appropriations 25 Act.

SECTION 16. Separability Clause. - If any provision or part of this Act shall

be held invalid or unconstitutional, the remainder of the law or the provisions not otherwise affected shall remain valid and subsisting.

SECTION 17. Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, orders, issuances or

portions thereof, which are inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or modified accordingly.

SECTION 18. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days

following the completion of its publication in the Official Gazette or in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation, whichever comes earlier Approved,