SPECIAL SESSION APPROVES LANDMARK BILLS ON OIL POLLUTION COMPENSATION AND DETENTION OF PATIENTS

The special session has proven to be very productive, after all.

The Senate has approved on third and final reading on the first day of its special session today two landmark national bills on environment and health, both sponsored by Senator Pia S. Cayetano.

The first bill, Senate Bill No.2600 or the "Oil Pollution Compensation Act," institutes a mechanism for the prevention, abatement, mitigation and control of oil pollution within the territorial boundaries of the country.

According to Cayetano, SBN 2600, the bill "lays down tougher rules to make oil polluters pay, and make them pay heavily, so that they will be more conscious of the need to protect the environment."

She noted that the two worst oil spills in the country happened in the last two years: the Solar I oil spill off Guimaras Island in August 2006 and the Napocor Barge 106 oil spill off Semirara Island in December 2005.

Some affected residents of Guimaras have reportedly received compensation for economic losses from the International Oil Pollution Compensation Fund, ranging from only P4,800 to P32,000 per family. The bill, she adds, will allow the government and affected residents to compel those responsible for long-term damages in future oil spill incidents.

SBN 2600 consolidates six bills in the Senate and consolidated the version of the House of Representatives, House Bill No.4363. Aside from Cayetano, its principal sponsors include Senators Joker Arroyo and Franklin Drilon.

The second approved measure, House Bill No.68, adopted under Committee Report No. 302, seeks to prohibit and penalize the detention of patients in hospitals and medical clinics due to non-payment of their hospital bills or medical expenses.

"This measure will address the common practice now where patients are barred from leaving the hospital unless they fully or partially settle their hospital bills. While the collection of hospital bills is a legitimate concern on the part of the hospital management, the practice simply compounds the problem because the patient's extended stay causes his hospital bills to grow even higher," she stressed.

The proposed law seeks to strike a compromise acceptable to both medical institutions and financially distressed patients. "While the rights of hospital owners and medical practitioners must be respected, there must be a better and more humane way of treating patients who already wish to leave the hospital were it not for their unpaid bills," she added.

Committee report No. 302 consolidates HBN 68 sponsored by Rep. Raul de Mar and Senate Bills 337, 607, 1373 and 2454, introduced by Senators Sergio Osmea III, Manny Villar, Ralph Recto and Alfredo Lim, respectively.

SALIENT POINTS OF SBN 2600 ("Oil Compensation Act of 2007"):

1. Liability shall be imposed on the owners of ships involved in oil pollution, based on the vessel's tonnage. Such damages shall include expenses incurred in clean-up operations at sea or on shore, damage to human health or loss of life as well as environmental restoration. (Secs. 6, 9, 10)

2. A Fund to cover incidents causing oil pollution damage shall be constituted by owners of ships registered in the Philippines representing the limit of their liability with the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA). (Sec. 11)

3. An Oil Pollution Management Fund (OPMF) shall also be created to be administered by the Philippine Coast Guard, comprised of fines imposed pursuant to this Act as well as from grants, donations, endowments and specific allotments under the annual General Appropriations Act. At least 90% of the OPMF shall be maintained annually for the Coast Guard's containment and clean-up operations, the rest allocated for research, enforcement and monitoring activities. (Sec. 22)

4. Any person who has received more than 150,000 tons of contributing oil in a calendar year through carriage by sea shall report this and pay contributions to the International Oil Pollution Compensation or IOPC Fund in accordance with the provisions of the 1992 Fund Convention. (Secs. 15-16)

5. All owners of ships whether registered in the Philippines or not, shall be required annually to maintain insurance or financial security for oil pollution damage, which shall be attested by a certificate in the form established by the 1969 Civil Liability Convention. (Secs. 12-14)

SALIENT POINTS OF HBN 68 ("An Act Prohbiting the Detention of Patients in Hospitals and Medical Clinics on Grounds of Non-payment of Hospital Bills or Medical Expenses"):

1. The proposed law shall make it unlawful for any hospital or medical clinic in the country to detain, directly or indirectly, patients who have fully or partially recovered or who may have died, for reasons of nonpayment, in part or in full, of their hospital bills or medical expenses. (Sec. 1)

2. Patients who have fully or partially recovered and who already wish to leave the hospital but are financially incapable to settle, in part or in full, their hospitalization expenses, including professional fees and medicines, shall be allowed to leave upon the execution of a promissory note covering the unpaid obligation. The promissory note shall be secured by either a mortgage or by a guarantee of a co-maker, who will be jointly and severally liable with the patient for the unpaid obligation. However, patients who stay in private rooms are not covered. (Section 2)

3. Hospitals or clinics that refuse to release patients shall be punished by a fine between P20,000 and P50,000 or imprisonment of not less than one month but not more than six months, or both, at the discretion of the proper court. (Section 3)