Sen. Gatchalian urges Senate to set medical benefits fund for teachers in 2021 budget

On Thursday, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian urged the Senate to set aside a portion of the 2021 budget for the medical benefits of teachers, saying that the lack of this allowance during the COVID-19 pandemic sends a bad signal. 

According to Gatchalian under the Department of Education's (DepEd) proposed P563-billion budget for 2021 there is no item dedicated for the a medical allowance for teacher. 

Removing that medical benefit for teachers sends a wrong signal, a bad signal that in times of a pandemic, we are not taking care of them,

he said. 

The COVID-19 pandemic is a medical issue and the medical benefit is a good source for them to address this medical issue,

he said. 

Senator Pia Cayetano is the one who sponsored the DepEd's budget in plenary. According to her, the medical allowance could not be found in the 2021 budget because the executive department did not ask for funding for the program. 

Still, Cayetano did not consider having a separate fund for medical allowance of teachers, saying educators would be given the choice to spend their P5,000 allowance for medical needs. 

Even before the advent of Covid-19, teachers annually received P3,500 for their expenses for school materials. And due to the sudden shift to blended learning, the Senate passed a law that would increase the chalk allowance to P5,000 next year so that educators may have extra cash for their needs. 

They included it as part of the expenses that can be used by teachers for their allowances so it's a choice that they make,

she said. 

I just want to make sure that there will be no overlapping [of allocations],

she said, noting that the government has to spend on a lot of things next year, including the purchase of COVID-19 vaccines. 

Cayetano added that a separate funding for teachers' medical check-ups is not a priority as not all educators may need to see a doctor during the global pandemic. 

However, Gatchalian said that giving a medical benefit for teachers would help boost the morale of the education sector. 

My intention is just to make sure that the morale of our teachers remain high especially at this time that they are frontliners in bringing education to our children,

he said.