BAGUIO CITY, Aug. 16 (PIA) – Baguio Representative Mark Go reported that two very important bills were recently approved on third and final reading in the House of Representatives.
In the online Kapihan sa Baguio on August 11, Go said that the House Bill 6953 or the Bayanihan to Recover As One Act, also known as the Bayanihan 2, and House Bill 6756 or the Medical Scholarship and Return Service Program were approved in a virtual plenary session on Monday night.
HB 6953 aims to hasten the country’s COVID-19 recovery and response by providing the necessary stimulus and recovery measures such as low-interest loans for micro, small and medium enterprioses; additional resources for health care; sustained efforts for COVID-19 testing, tracing, isolation, and treatment, and support programs for health workers, among others.
Go said that the bill will not only respond to the COVID-19 situation but to help the economy to a certain degree and those people in the different sectors who are affected by the pandemic.
The Lower House approved a P162-billion fund as economic stimulus. The Senate version is P140B.
Go said that they will wait for the Bicameral Conference Committee of both Houses to iron out the differences in their respective versions for approval and for signature into law by the President the soonest possible time.
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte, in his fifth State of the Nation Address, called on Congress to pass the Bayanihan 2 to help speed up the country’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Meanwhile, Go, chairperson of the Committee on Higher and Technical Education, has sponsored the bill granting medical scholarship with return service to deserving students. This expands the current scholarship programs already established in eight state universities and colleges.
Under this bill, medical students can also avail of scholarships in private higher education institutions in regions where there are no SUCs offering a medical course or scholarship.
Scholarship benefits include allowance for prescribed books, clothing/uniform, supplies and equipment; allowance for dormitory or boarding house accommodation including transportation; Internship and medical board review fees, and annual medical insurance, and other education-related miscellaneous subsistence or expenses. (JDP/RMC- PIA CAR)
Source: Philippines Information Agency (pia.gov.ph)
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