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“It pains me to see (tarpaulins) of politicians and partylists claiming to represent our voices, even using images of nurses to boost their campaign. But the truth is, most of them were nowhere to be found when we were fighting for our rights and welfare,” Filipino nurse Pauline Budy said.
How can we go on duty if we, workers, could hardly breathe?
The Alliance of Health Workers said health workers are human beings who need enough rest when they are tired and sick.
“Almost all of the expenses were taken from our savings. Aside from this, it is taking a constant toll on our mental wellbeing especially since we have to think about our work and studies during the [supposed] recovery period.”
“We need to strengthen our public health system. We can do this through the implementation of a free, comprehensive, and progressive public health system in the country.”
"Testing remains as the vital link to the rest of the public health strategies of contact tracing and isolation, in order to truly mitigate the spread of more infectious variants like Omicron in communities."
The campaign asserting their rights and welfare won for them some of their much-deserved benefits, and led to the expansion and consolidation of their unions and organizations.
“We don’t have a concept of disease surveillance where communities are regularly tested, or in looking for the possible source of infection.”
Anakpawis Party-list First Nominee Rafael Mariano said, “We have been calling for free mass testing and medical support since 2020. These are the fundamental concerns of poor families, they are not able to take the test immediately and still want to work so that the family can have something to eat.”
“Prohibiting access to basic services such as public transportation and threats of possible arrests and detention of unvaccinated individuals if they go out of their homes are certainly highly questionable policies that violate their rights.”
"We must not neglect testing the way it has been in past two years. Access to testing must be ensured, especially for symptomatic individuals, and those who cannot work from home regardless of vaccination status."
For Joshua San Pedro, co-convenor of the Coalition for People’s Right to Health, corruption will persist until a comprehensive public health care is established and there are no more gaps in social services that may be taken advantage of and profited from.
“If we are to learn from the COVID pandemic, we must treat it as an opportunity to reframe public health and governance towards recognizing and promoting human rights.”
By insisting COVID-19 vaccines remain under the control of big pharmaceutical companies under their TRIPS-mandated 20-year monopoly patents, the WTO has effectively restricted access to these life-saving vaccines especially for countries who need them the most.
For Joshua San Pedro, co-convenor of the Coalition for People’s Right to Health, data on vaccine distribution in the country is anything but transparent.
Comelec earlier denied the Nurses United Partylist the accreditation it needs to run for the partylist elections next year. This, said Makabayan chairperson and senatorial aspirant Neri Colmenares, adds to “the big injustice suffered by our pandemic heroes.”
The reverting to the strictest lockdown did not offer relief to the overburdened health workers as Covid-19 cases continued to climb, following pronouncements from the health department that there is already a community transmission of the Delta variant, a variant of concern per the WHO that has brought nightmares to the public health care of other countries hit by it.
For perspective, the PGH received P6.87 billion ($134.90 Billion) in 2021. Thus, instead of increasing the hospital’s budget because of the increasing expenses due to the demands of the pandemic, the proposed budget cuts the hospital’s allocation by 18 percent.
In the proposed budget, the epidemiology and disease surveillance program is set to receive P113 million in 2022. This is 33 percent lower than this year’s P158.6 million budget, and even way lower than the allocation set for this program before the pandemic.
“We must not endanger the lives of PLE takers over a 4-day face-to-face examination in the middle of highly unsafe conditions just so that they may be added to our health workforce.”
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