Duterte-Cayetano tandem proposes ‘zero tax plus subsidy’ for doctors willing to serve in provinces

Vice-presidential candidate Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano (left) and Presidential candidate Rodrigo “Rody” Duterte (right)
(Photo courtesy of the official Facebook page of Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano)

MANILA—Medical doctors who are willing to leave the lucrative city and practice and serve poverty-stricken people in the provinces will be provided with “zero tax plus subsidy.”

This was disclosed by PDP-LABAN presidential bet Davao Rodrigo Duterte and his running mate, Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano.

“The country’s disorder can be seen in the sorry state of our health care system. Halos lahat ng doktor nasa Maynila at malalaking siyudad. Dapat pumunta sila sa mga probinsiya kung saan sila mas kailangan,” Duterte said.

Cayetano, citing government statistics, said seven out of 10 Filipinos die without seeing a doctor.

“We encourage our doctors to go to the provinces. We will guarantee their safety, exempt them from paying income taxes, and even give them additional subsidy,” he added.

The tandem said the lack of public health workers and facilities in rural areas deprives patients of the proper treatment they need.

Hence, if elected, they vowed to pave the way for more accessible health care services in the countryside, like specialty hospitals in Visayas and in Mindanao, as well as tertiary hospitals in the regions.

“In the ARMM alone, it takes a patient 60.9 minutes to reach the nearest hospital. This is criminal. This is totally unacceptable,” Duterte said.

“There should be no second-class citizens with regards to health care. Tama na ang gulo at hirap sa kawalan ng maayos na health care system. Panahon na para sumaya ang mga Pilipino,” Cayetano said.