A measure has been filed in the Senate seeking stiffer penalties for falsifying medical documents, including test results and vaccination cards, during national health emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic.
Senate Bill 2315, filed by Senator Richard Gordon earlier this month, imposes a penalty of up to six years in prison and a larger fine not over P250,000 to any private person or physician found to have falsified any medical certificate, test result, or vaccination card during a declared national emergency.
If committed by a group of three or more people for a gain, the fine is further increased to P1 million. At present, the Revised Penal Code only imposes a penalty of up to two years and four months in prison and a fine not over P200,000 for falsification of medical certificates.
Gordon, who chairs the Philippine Red Cross, said it was necessary to increase the penalty for falsification of medical certificates during national health emergencies as it undermines the government's efforts to address the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
"To effectively manage the pandemic, we need to have an efficient and widely available testing strategy that will enable the government to isolate people that have active infection whether symptomatic or asymptomatic," he added.
Gordon is currently admitted to the Makati Medical Center for further tests and observation after he tested positive for COVID-19.
As of July 29, the Philippines has reported over 1.57 million COVID-19 cases, of which more than 27,000 have died.