House Speaker Faustino “Bojie” G. Dy III has expressed support for a bill seeking to establish a nationwide Integrated Emergency Medical Services System (EMSS) to ensure fast, orderly, and quality medical response in the country. This comes after the House Committee on Health approved the consolidation of nine bills aimed at institutionalizing the EMSS at the national, regional, and local levels.
Current System Lacks Unity
According to Committee Chair and Batanes Rep. Ciriaco Gato Jr., although a national emergency hotline was established a decade ago, the country still lacks a unified system. The current fragmented system results in slow response times and preventable deaths.
Under the new proposal, a single national standard will be established for responder training, emergency transport, hospital coordination, and ambulance regulation.
Support from DOH and Lawmakers
The Department of Health (DOH), through Undersecretary Dr. Albert Francis Domingo, expressed full support, emphasizing the importance of strengthening pre-hospital emergency care, especially in remote areas.
Akbayan Rep. Percival Cendaña, one of the bill's authors, said the measure will consolidate existing assistance from Local Government Units (LGUs), private ambulances, and volunteer organizations into an organized national framework.
