Gov't allocated P240.74 billion for COVID-19 response in 2022 — Palace

MANILA, Philippines — The Duterte administration has allocated more than P240 billion for COVID-19 response in next year's budget, of which P45 billion would be used to buy booster shots, Malacañang said Thursday.

Of the P240.75 billion outlay for pandemic response, P93.78 billion will go to the Department of Health (DOH), P33.63 billion will be allocated to the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), and P11.52 billion will be set aside for the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), according to data released by presidential spokesman Harry Roque.

Some P1.28 billion will be allocated to the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), P1.2 billion will go to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), and P140 million will be given to the University of the Philippines (UP). The Department of Education (DepEd), meanwhile, will get about P99.2 billion.

More than half of the funds to be given to the DOH or P48.41 billion will be used for regular fund items including health facilities enhancement; policies and facilities intended to prevent and control communicable diseases including the One Hospital Command Center; assistance to indigent patients; procurement and supply chain management service; and health information technology. Also part of the regular fund are locally funded projects like COVID-19 response laboratory commodities and emergency hiring of healthcare workers; and projects supported by multilateral lenders Asian Development Bank and World Bank.

The procurement of booster shots, which was given a budget of P45.37 billion, was categorized under unprogrammed appropriations. The DOH has yet to approve the giving of booster shots to fully vaccinated persons due to lack of data about its safety. Roque previously said Filipinos should wait for the inoculation of majority of the population before seeking booster shots.

About two thirds of the DOLE's pandemic response budget or P22.34 billion will be used for livelihood and emergency employment programs including the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers.

About P11.29 billion was set aside for the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration's (OWWA) welfare services namely the emergency repatriation program and the reintegration services for overseas Filipino workers.

"Of course the budget for OWWA is huge because we are spending for the repatriation of our OFWs That was given P11 billion. For the reintegration, the budget is P52 million," Roque said.

The DSWD budget will fund the poverty alleviation program Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan. The DOST's outlay will be used to establish the Virology Science and Technology Institute of the Philippines and research and development efforts while the DTI funding will support livelihood initiatives including the Livelihood Seeding Program and the Pangkabuhayan sa Pagbangon at Ginhawa.

The administration has also allocated P140 million for the second phase of the Philippine Genomic Information and Resource Hub of the UP System. The DepEd budget, meanwhile, will fund flexible learning options, textbooks and other instructional materials, maintenance and operating expenses of schools, computerization program, human resource development, disaster preparedness and response, assistance for students, feeding programs, and basic education facilities. 

Roque noted that Congress may increase or reduce the proposed pandemic response funding.