PH deployment ban on nurses abroad stays: DOLE

FILE: Department of Labor and Employment Secretary Silvestre Bello III during a press conference on Thursday (Sept. 27, 2018), which is held at the DOLE main office in Intramuros, Manila. (PNA photo by Gil Calinga)

MANILA – The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on Friday warned the public against the supposed deployment of nurses abroad.

“The public is hereby warned that any overseas deployment of nurses unless expressly authorized by the POEA (Philippine Overseas Employment Administration), is deemed illegal,” Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said in a statement.

Bello also clarified that the ban on the deployment of Filipino nurses abroad remains in effect.

He denied reports that the government has eased the restrictions on the sending of Filipino medical workers abroad.

“Our attention was called on reports that the government has relaxed the restrictions on the deployment of nurses abroad. This is totally untrue. The ban imposed on the deployment of nurses stays,” he added.

He reiterated that “the ban is pursuant to the decision of the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) in order to ensure that the country’s health care requirements are fully met.”

He said the policy decision was implemented by the POEA through its Governing Board Resolution No. 9 adopted in April.

He added that based on the resolution, those workers in the medical sector who were allowed to leave the country despite the deployment ban are those who have completed their papers before March 8.

Earlier, the POEA temporarily suspended the deployment of health care workers to ensure that the country has a sufficient number of workers if the need arises amid coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic.