According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 24% of the global population or over 450 million people around the world suffer from different mental or neurological disorders – and unbeknownst to most, mental health issues are actually considered one of the leading causes of disability worldwide.
In the Philippines alone, WHO’s report released in 2014 revealed that there is a total of 2,558 suicide cases caused by mental health problems in the country in 2012.
While the statistics and the facts are there, the Philippines, however, is one of the many places in the world where mental health remains a misunderstood and stigmatized topic – but a present development in the form of the landmark Mental Health Bill, which was recently passed into law, could change all that.
Here are some of the major questions and answers that you should know about the Republic Act 11036 or the Mental Health Law in the Philippines:
1. Who authored and sponsored the Mental Health Bill?
While there were several groups and legislators who extended their support and efforts in promoting Mental Health measures in the Philippines, the recently passed law was written and sponsored by Sen. Risa Hontiveros.
2. Who signed the Mental Health Bill into Law?
The incumbent president of the Philippines, Rodrigo Roa Duterte signed the Mental Health Bill and officially acknowledged it as the Mental Health Law o Republic Act 11036 on June 20, 2018, a day before the then bill finally lapsed into law.
3. What changes can the RA 11036 bring to the country?
Aside from paving the way to a total integration of mental health into the Philippines general healthcare system, the Mental Health Law will provide patients and sufferers access to the benefits of government medical insurance like PhilHealth.
These benefits include payment coverage for the mental health patient’s medical check-up, medicine, and hospital confinement. Most importantly, the RA 11036 mandates the government to provide specific health sectors, units and health workforce that are primarily dedicated to attending to mental health sufferers.
4. Which government agency will lead the implementation of the Mental Health Law?
As the principal health agency in the Philippines, the Department of Health (DOH) will be a major player in the implementation of the new measures included in the law. For starters, the DOH, according to the Mental Health Bill initially passed in the Senate, will have the power to institutionalize mental health services on a national level: that includes the regional, provincial, and even tertiary hospitals in the county.
According to the bill’s author, Sen. Hontiveros, there is even a possibility that these services can be brought down even to the barangay (village) level.
5. What roles will educational institutions play in the new RA 11036?
When the bill was unanimously approved by the Senate in 2017, there were several inclusions in the said proposal that highlighted the roles of different government and public sectors in order to fully implement its measures – and one of the major sectors that will play a role in the new RA 11036 are schools/ educational institutions.
The Department of Health could be tasked to coordinate with educational institutions to incorporate mental health into the curricula of every school in the country. This move could help put mental health issues into the mainstream consciousness of younger learners and could help reduce, and hopefully eliminate the stigma.
6. What options did patients have before the RA 11036 was passed?
Before the Mental Health Law was passed into law, there were only a few to no benefits that mental health patients can rely on. Here are two of them.
Health Insurance Coverage
One major yet limited measure was centered on government insurance coverage from PhilHealth. Before RA 11036, PhilHealth insurance only covered a mental health patient’s hospitalization as long as the event was caused by extreme or acute episodes of mental or behavioral disorders. Moreover, the package was only at a very minimum rate of PhP 7,800.
Mental Health Hotlines
In 2016, the slow yet emerging efforts by the government to acknowledge mental health as a serious issue has given patients and sufferers a glimpse of hope. It was when a national hotline dedicated for mental health assistance went live, together with other resources that provided access to psychiatrists and other assistance options.
However, the hotline was short-lived, with multiple complaints from those who tried to reach out, emphasizing the hotlines’ inaccessibility after work hours instead of a needed 24/7 services. Its failure was further fuelled by apparently “apathetic” responders who did not seem to know how to deal with callers undergoing a mental health crisis.
7. Is RA 11036 the first law of its kind?
According to the Mental Health Law’s proponents and its supporting coalition, RA 11036 is actually the very first legislation that was written to protect the rights as well as the welfare of Filipinos with mental health conditions.
Most importantly, the law is the first to acknowledge measures that directly shifts the focus of care, primarily to the community, emphasizing the importance of access to services and integration of mental health in both the national school curricula and countrywide workplace regulations.
8. How was RA 11036 received by the Filipinos?
Mental health advocates, lawmakers, health workers, and millions of Filipinos have supported and commended the move to finally recognize the need for measures to support, assist and provide the necessary help to mental health sufferers.
The online community made popular several tags and hashtags such as #HelpisHere, #MoveForMH and #MentalHealthforAll on social media, using them on their posts to promote and show their full support on the said measure.
Conclusion
Even without the final draft of the Mental Health Law’s Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) yet, the law’s proponents and supporters are hopeful that more services, resources, and benefits for all Filipinos can be successfully accommodated in the RA 11036.
While the move to finally pass the Mental Health Bill into law was a monumental one, many still believe that there is still more work to be done in order to create a more accepting, understanding and supportive Philippine society when it comes to matters concerning mental health issues.
References:
https://www.rappler.com/nation/205425-duterte-signs-mental-health-law-services-philippines
http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/06/21/18/duterte-approves-mental-health-law-hontiveros
https://ourworldindata.org/mental-health
http://www.who.int/whr/2001/media_centre/press_release/en/
http://bworldonline.com/minding-gap-philippines-mental-health/
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Its alright having a Mental Health Bill,but here in Baruyan ,Calapan City,Oriental Mindoro,it does not seem much use. Next door we have a man with Paranoid Schizophrenia,who has been seen by a Psychiatrist for two year. He looked up in a cage ,he refuses medication is mother who is in her 70s is his only carer ,and her mental health is suffering.No one seems to want to do anything.My wife and I are ex psychiatric nurses,and for a time volunteered our time to help in his care, However we stopped when we questined the need to have him assessed for what he had been perscribed, The bill does not seem to have any merit.
Hi! Good morning! I just read your article while browsing the net on mental health. I found a portion of your article inaccurate. I quote:
“In 2016, the slow yet emerging efforts by the government to acknowledge
mental health as a serious issue has given patients and sufferers a glimpse
of hope. It was when a national hotline dedicated for mental health assistance
went live, together with other resources that provided access to psychiatrists
and other assistance options.
However, the hotline was short-lived, with multiple complaints from those
who tried to reach out, emphasizing the hotlines’ inaccessibility after work
hours instead of a needed 24/7 services. Its failure was further fuelled by
apparently “apathetic” responders who did not seem to know how to deal
with callers undergoing a mental health crisis.”
May I ask where you got this information? There is only one (1) hotline the DOH is operating and that is still operational and remains accessible to this day and hour. It did not fail to answer and respond to callers in need.