DAVAO CITY – Progressive lawmakers have introduced a bill seeking to protect nutritionists and dieticians by providing them with plantilla positions and minimum entry salary grade 16.
House Bill 4742 or the proposed Nutrition and Dietetics Law, which Gabriela Women’s Partylist Rep. Luzviminda Ilagan co-authors with Bayan Muna Reps. Neri Colmenares and Carlos Zarate, seeks to ensure that government hospitals provide plantilla positions for full-time registered nutritionist-dieticians.
Hospitals with a 101-150 bed capacity will be required to hire at least 4 registered nutritionist-dieticians. Local Government Units will also be required to have one nutritionist-dietician per 25,000 population.
Ilagan said there is a need to protect and guarantee the interests of health workers.
“Our people are severely malnourished in so many aspects. While recognizing the need for radical reforms to ensure that every family has access to decent meals three times a day, we must also remember to recognize the need to guarantee the rights, protect and recognize our health workers, including our nutritionists and dieticians,” she said.
The bill has been approved by the Committee on Civil Service and Professional Regulation last May 4 and has likewise passed the Committee on Appropriations last May 26, 2015.
