IMMUNIZATION

(1)
https://apps.who.int/immunization_monitoring/globalsummary/countries?countrycriteria
%5Bcountry%5D%5B%5D=PHL

A. Cases

Measles cases increased drastically from 179 reported cases in 2016 to 2,428 in 2017.
An unprecedented further increase in reported measles cases occurred between 2017
to 2018 with 20,827 cases reported as opposed to the 2,428 cases the previous year.

B. Immunization Coverage by Vaccine type (Data is % of the target population

vaccinated by antigen):
For the first 15 vaccines with available data:
-From 2017 to 2018: the first 15 vaccines ALL had lower immunization coverage rate.
-Pol3 or the 3rd dose of polio vaccine suffered the most: from 91% coverage to 66%, a
25% decrease.
-Pol3 vaccination coverage rate was at its lowest in 2018, the lowest since 1990
-MCV1 and MCV2 (Measles carrying Vaccine) also suffered from a 22% and 21%
decrease respectively.

(2) https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/05/08/19/unicef-ph-immunization-coverage-
dropping-at-alarming-rate

-2.9 million Filipino children are at risk of contracting life-threatening diseases.

-Measles immunization coverage drooped from 88% (2013) to 73% (2017) to 70%
(2018) which is well below the required 95%.
-Low immunization turnout factors: public health scare, vaccine shortage, difficulty
accessing hard to reach areas.

(3) https://www.rappler.com/nation/195101-kids-vaccination-rate-down-dengvaxia-
scare-doh

-Only 60% of Filipino children get their scheduled vaccinations. This is 15% short with
the DOH’s annual vaccination rate target of 85%.

HIV CASES

(4) https://aidsinfo.unaids.org

(note: all numbers are estimated cases)

Trends of new HIV Infections:

-2010: 4,40
-2015: 9,500
-2018: 13,000
-Change in new HIV infections since 2010: 203%

Trends of AIDS related deaths:

-2010: less than 500
-2015: less than 1000
-2018: 1200 estimated deaths
-Change in AIDS-related death since 2010: 285%

People living with HIV (all ages)

-2010: 15,000
=adolescents (10-19): 2,000
=young adults (15-24): 7,700
-2015: 46,000 estimated cases
=adolescents: 4,600
=young adults: 20,000
-2018: 77,000 estimated cases
=adolescents: 6,700
=young adults: 30,000

(5) https://www.amfar.org/unaids-calls-for-urgent-action/

Globally, AIDS-related deaths have declined by 33% since 2010. At the same tie that
AIDS-related deaths have gone down globally, in the PH, it increased by 285%.

TEEN PREGNANCY

(6) https://news.abs-cbn.com/spotlight/07/11/19/nearly-200000-filipino-teens-get-
pregnant-annually-popcom

-As of 2017, nearly 500 teen girls give birth in the Philippines everyday.
-Approximately 196,000 girls between the ages of 15-19 get pregnant each year.
-There were at least 2,000 cases of 10-14 y.o. girls who were pregnant in 2017. This is
an increase of 200 cases form 2016.

(7) https://cnnphilippines.com/news/2019/8/29/teen-pregnancy-population-commission-
.html?fbclid=IwAR1hUZoeYZ2h92Pniv4gFauQANU8oNSEVz0l7ryfweBm_M_w3ld6nFc
GoKA

-30-50 pregnancies per year are occurring among 10 year olds.

-Around 530 teen girls get pregnant each day. The number has never been below 500
since 2010.

LOOMING LAYOFF OF HEALTH WORKERS, NURSES

If approved, the current version of next year’s national budget for the health department
will result in the layoff of around 10,000 health personnel around the country.
According to estimates by Senator Ralph Recto, 7,107 nurses,. 202 nurses, and 597
medical technologists will lose their jobs due to the P9.39 budget cut in the 2020
allocation of the DOH. (note: Ask Legis if they have info on basis of this)

This means that 4 out of 10 health workers in the public sector will be out of work by
next year.

https://www.rappler.com/nation/242216-recto-says-health-workers-stand-lose-jobs-doh-
budget-cut

This is illogical given that the DOH itself said that it would need more nurses to fully
implement services under the Universal Health Care Law.

The DOH said that it needs around 26,305 health workers if it will successfully enact the
provisions of the Universal Health Care Law in every part of the country. Of that
amount, at least 17,205 are nurses.

The rest of positions needed are doctors, dentists, pharmacists, dietitians, and
midwives, especially for health facilities in rural communities.

https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/07/28/19/doh-nangangailangan-ng-26000-
kontraktuwal-na-health-workers

https://businessmirror.com.ph/2019/08/29/uhc-may-not-be-ready-for-phl-wide-rollout-in-
2020/

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1063302

PHILHEALTH FALSE CLAIMS

Cases of fraud and abuse of the government's health insurance system must be fixed
before the implementation of the Universal Healthcare Act, a multi-billion peso
endeavor.

The controversy surrounding the “ghost dialysis” scheme has revealed how millions in
public funds were channeled to the pockets of unscrupulous people.

According to whistleblowers Edwin Roberto and Leizel Aileen De Leon, in the case of
Well-Med Dialysis Center alone, the government may have lost P300 million in just a
span of 2 years due to fraud and abuse of our health coverage procedures.

Given that there are around 2,000 health providers in the country tapped by Philhealth
for its services, just how much public funding are we losing?
Even if it has been drastically lowered, the funding for the UHC Act is still a whopping
P160 billion. We cannot afford to let that amount be wasted on greedy individuals.

https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/06/06/19/hit-by-ghost-dialysis-scandal-philhealth-hires-
fraud-investigators

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1173721/what-went-before-ghost-dialysis-complainants-
were-assured-of-protection

https://cnnphilippines.com/news/2019/6/26/former-wellmed-employees-
wpp.html?fbclid=IwAR3j24jR28Qp9mAJReTsOl6jPqU-lKb1w5Oh-
pJxDwtIt_wOsbu259fiKi0