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Neil Jayson Servallos - The Philippine Star
January 4, 2026 | 12:00am
Senator-elect Erwin Tulfo participates in the orientation for neophyte senators in Pasay on June 19, 2025.
Jesse Bustos / The Philippine STAR
MANILA, Philippines — A proposal to raise the minimum salary grade of nurses in public health institutions has been filed in the Senate, as lawmakers seek to address persistent understaffing and uncompetitive pay in the health care sector.
Filed on Dec. 15, 2025 by Sen. Erwin Tulfo, Senate Bill 1612 proposes to amend Section 32 of the Philippine Nursing Act of 2002 to mandate a higher minimum base pay for nurses employed in government hospitals and health facilities.
“Our country continues to face a growing shortage of nurses, driven largely by low salaries and the lack of competitive opportunities in the local health care system. Improving their compensation is necessary to retain skilled nurses, strengthen health care services and ensure that quality care remains accessible to all Filipinos,” the bill read.
Under the measure, the revised salary floor would be aligned with the Salary Standardization Law.
In the bill’s explanatory note, Tulfo said nurses continue to shoulder heavy workloads in hospitals, rural health units and disaster response operations, often working under strained conditions due to staffing shortages.
He pointed to nurse-to-patient ratios reaching as high as 1:40 in some hospitals, a situation he attributed partly to low compensation and limited local opportunities that push nurses to seek employment abroad.
Tulfo said the proposed increase in salary grade – from salary grade 15 to 19 – is intended to help retain skilled nurses, strengthen the public health care system and ensure continued access to quality care for patients.
The bill provides that funding for the salary upgrade will be charged initially against the Department of Health’s current appropriations, with subsequent funding to be included in the annual General Appropriations Act.
The DOH and the Department of Budget and Management are directed to issue the necessary implementing rules and regulations.
The proposal is awaiting committee deliberation.
