Question & AnswerQ&A (Republic Act No. 1891)
The primary objective of Republic Act No. 1891 is to amend specific sections of Republic Act No. 1082 to strengthen health and dental services in rural areas of the Philippines and provide funds for this purpose.
The Act amends sections two (a), (b), and (c), three, four, seven, and eight of Republic Act No. 1082, particularly defining the creation of Provincial Health Officers, dental units, rural health units categorized by population, allocation of health personnel, the establishment of pharmacist positions, and appropriations for funding these services.
Dental units are established in each congressional district and comprise a Public Health Dentist and a dental helper. Additional dental units are mandated based on population thresholds: one additional if the population is over 100,000 but not more than 150,000, and two additional units if the population exceeds 150,000.
Rural health units are classified into eight categories depending on the population of the municipalities they serve. Each category specifies the number and type of health personnel, ranging from a category with one midwife and sanitary inspector for populations up to 2,000 to categories with multiple municipal health officers, public health nurses, midwives, and sanitary inspectors for larger populations.
The rural health units are headed by Municipal Health Officers, who are existing Presidents of Sanitary Divisions, Municipal Maternity and Charity Clinic Physicians, and Heads of Units of the Bureau of Health.
The Act provides minimum and maximum annual salary ranges for various health personnel positions, such as Municipal Health Officers, Public Health Dentists, Public Health Nurses, Midwives, Provincial Sanitary Inspectors, and Pharmacists, with specific amounts for each role.
Municipal Health Officers remain in their present stations until transferred by the Director of Health to places where their services are more needed for the interest of public health.
A special appropriation in the amount of four million pesos was made for the fiscal year 1954-1955 for purposes including purchase of supplies and equipment. Annual appropriations were also established for the creation of additional rural health and dental units, with provisions for integrating these funds into the General Appropriation Act after the completion of the six-year program.
The Secretary of Health is the appointing authority for positions absorbed or created by the Act, based on the recommendation of the Director of Health.
The Director of Health, with approval from the Secretary of Health, may regroup contiguous municipalities and assign rural health units of the proper category to those groups, ensuring flexible and equitable distribution of health personnel based on population needs.