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MANILA, Philippines — For Filipino queer couples, medical decisions have become a major roadblock given existing conservative laws.
“Members of the LGBTQIA+ community do not enjoy the same rights in the face of the law, especially in marriage and family relations,” Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte said.
“One problem they face is when one of them is hospitalized and medical decisions should be made for him, her, or them, they look for members of the family,” Belmonte added.
Hoping to bridge the gap, the Quezon City government pioneered the Right to Care card in 2023, which uses the special power of attorney to help queer couples decide on medical concerns.
“Sometimes, members of the family have abandoned them because of their sexual orientation, gender identity, expression and sex characteristic. Their partner who should be deciding for them is not given that right,” Belmonte said.
“I felt very strongly that right should be given to the partner. It’s a kind of a workaround ordinance, because there is no existing law for a way to make it legal,” she added.
Other cities, towns and provinces are replicating the ordinance, with lawmakers filing their own versions of the bill to help their constituents access better health care.
TREYNA Group deputy creative director Adrian de Guzman admitted it took some time for them to find another locality, until San Juan City took the chance and the rest followed.
Four more cities enacted the same ordinance: Iloilo, Parañaque, Dasmariñas and Mandaluyong. Cavite and Cebu adopted it at a provincial level.
Cities and towns that have filed an ordinance for a right to care card include Baguio, Makati, Pasig, Naga, Bacolod, Batangas, San Jose del Monte in Bulacan, Roxas, Isabela and Naic, Cavite.
“The Right to Care program is a gift of the LGBTQ community to everyone, because we’ve opened the doors into embracing everyone, not just the queer community, but also live-in partners, families of OFWs (overseas Filipino workers), single parents, PWDs (persons with disabilities),” De Guzman said.
“If ever this is legislated, we will not wait for another emergency or another incident where there will be a flow conversation of ‘where are the parents, where is the partner?’ We have closed the gap with this advanced care planning,” he said.
Road to legislation
Before representing the Akbayan party list, Perci Cendaña was involved in the Quezon City Gender Development Team and was hands-on with the passage of the RTC Card ordinance.
When he took on the challenge as a congressman, he immediately asked Belmonte for permission to file a bill making the RTC card on a national scale and got a resounding yes.
Cendaña assumed office at the House of Representatives in 2024 and made the Right to Care Act among his priority bills in the hopes of making the ordinance accessible across the country.
The Right to Care Act seeks to nationalize the benefits of the same ordinance that gives the opportunity for people to designate their health care proxy that will make medical decisions in times of emergency.
It was a bonus that more cities, municipalities and provinces have the RTC Card ordinance with Cendaña saying: “Passing a legislation like this would show Congress na may proof of concept. This has been done, this is working in various LGUs in the country.”
While there are not a lot of legislators who are not members of the community but support and identify with the calls for diversity, equity, and inclusion, it was with the RTC Card that more showed up with their own version of the bill.
Among the district representatives who filed their bills are Negros Occidental 3rd District Rep. Javi Benitez, Lanao del Norte 2nd District Rep. Aminah Dimaporo, Camarines Sur 3rd District Rep. Nelson Legacion, Batangas 6th District Rep. Ryan Recto, Sultan Kudarat 2nd District Rep. Bella Suansing, and Dinagat Islands Rep. Kaka Bag-ao.
Meanwhile, FPJ Panday Bayanihan Rep. Brian Poe Llamanzares, 4K Rep. Iris Marie Montes and Mamamayang Liberal Rep. Leila de Lima filed versions of the bill while Akbayan Reps. Chel Diokno and Dadah Kiram-Ismula co-authored Cendaña’s filed bill.
The Right to Care Act is also filed in the Senate by Sen. Risa Hontiveros and co-authored by Senators Loren Legarda, Pia Cayetano and Raffy Tulfo.
“It is inspiring for our colleagues to file this and it’s also inspiring to the community to gradually see a sea of change in Congress. I’m very thankful to them for being brave and courageous enough to take up this piece of legislation,” Cendaña said.
“It has support from across the aisle in the House of Representatives. From the minority to the majority, someone filed this legislation. And it has a support base among the young legislators,” he added.
Several versions of the bill are currently being consolidated before it will be deliberated at the plenary.
Cendaña stressed that this bill is not just for the LGBTQIA+ community, but for the modern families, may it be lived-in partners, individuals with no partners, solo parents or OFWs with relatives who cannot be in the Philippines to make medical decisions in times of medical emergency.
Toward equality
With the progress of the Right to Care program, Belmonte is glad that many leaders replicated it for their constituents.
“We feel very happy because rather than rejecting us, that we are doing this, many believed that what we did was right and many followed suit which is an indication of what we’ve done, which also shows that many believe in equality,” she said.
For De Guzman, the RTC Card resonated with a lot of the key officials, recognizing that their constituents deserve to attain their rights.
“The Right to Care is rooted from trust and love. You cannot designate a health care proxy that you just know offhand, you will designate a health care proxy that you trust and that really knows you and knows your needs,” he said.
Belmonte believes that the country is ready for the bill to be enacted into a law on a national scale.
“Many people believe that it’s time that same-sex couples are given the same to what cisgender people are enjoying. I think the fact that more and more are embracing the Right to Care Card is a testament that we are ready,” the mayor said.
“We are very hopeful and we are very happy and we are looking forward to the passage of this measure. I think that this measure is a human rights measure. It’s not just about the LGBTQIA+ members but it’s also recognizing the dignity of an individual,” she added.
For his part, Cendaña challenged President Marcos to “walk the talk” after his statement in support of Pride Month and prioritize the Right to Care Act.
“Words are not enough. There has to be commitment in action. That’s the essence of Pride, changing policies, changing a culture, changing situations on the ground, to make the lives of LGBTQIA+ people more bearable, easier, and to realize fully their potential,” the legislator said.
With the Right to Care Act, Belmonte stressed that people can exercise their right to take care of their loved ones not defined by their blood but of trust.
