Philippine HIV and AIDS Policy Act

Section 4

the PNAC, established under Section 43 of Republic Act No. 8504, otherwise known as the "Philippine AIDS Prevention and Control Act of 1998", shall be reconstituted and streamlined to ensure the implementation of the country's response to the HIV and AIDS situation. The PNAC shall be an agency attached to the DOH with a separate budget under the General Appropriations Act (GAA). It shall have its own secretariat and staffing pattern that shall be headed by an executive director.

Section 5

The PNAC shall perform the following functions; (a) Develop the AIDS Medium Term Plan (AMTP) in collaboration with relevant government agencies, CSOs, the PLHIV community, and the other stakeholders; (b) Ensure the operationalization and implementation of the AMTP; (c) Strengthen the collaboration between government agencies and CSOs involved in the implementation of the national HIV and AIDS response, including the delivery of HIV and AIDS related services; (d) Develop and ensure the implementation of the guidelines and policies provided in this Act, including other policies that may be necessary to implement the AMTP; (e) Monitor the progress of the response to the country's HIV and AIDS situation; (f) Monitor the implementation of the AMTP, undertake mid-term assessments and evaluate its impact; (g) Mobilize sources of funds for the AMTP; (h) Mobilize its members to conduct monitoring and evaluation of HIV-related programs, policies, and services within their mandate; (i) Coordinate, organize, and work in partnership with foreign and international organizations regarding funding, data collection, research, and prevention and treatment modalities on HIV and AIDS, and ensure foreign funded programs are aligned to the national response; (j) Advocate for policy reforms to Congress and other government agencies to strengthen the country's response to the HIV and AIDS situation; (k) Submit an annual report to the Office of the President, Congress, and the members of the Council; (l) Identify gaps in the national response on the part of government agencies and its partners from civil society and international organizations, in order to develop and implement the initial interventions required in these situations; and (m) Recommend policies and programs that will institutionalize or continue the interventions required in addressing the gaps identified in the national response to the HIV and AIDS situation of the country. In addition to the powers and functions enumerated under the preceding paragraph, the members of the PNAC shall also develop and implement individual action plans, which shall be anchored to and integrated in the AMTP. Such action plans shall be based on the duties, powers, and functions of the individual agencies as identified in Articles II to VII of this Act.

Section 6

Selection of the members of PNAC shall be based on the following criteria: (a) Government agencies or CSOs with direct contribution to the performance of the core functions of the Council (oversight, direction setting and policy making); (b) Government agencies or CSOs with existing programs, services and activities that directly contribute to the achievement of the AMTP; and (c) Government agencies or CSOs with existing constituencies that are targeted by the AMTP's objectives and activities. The following agencies and CSOs shall be represented in the PNAC: (1) Department of Health (DOH); (2) Department of Education (DepEd); (3) Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE); (4) Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD); (5) Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG); (6) Civil Service Commission (CSC); (7) Commission on Higher Education (CHED); (8) National Youth Commission (NYC); (9) Philippine Information Agency (PIA); (10) Department of Budget and Management; (11) The Chairperson of the Committee on Health and Demography of the Senate of the Philippines or his representative; (12) The Chairperson of the Committee on Health of the House of Representative or his representative; (13-14) Two (2) representatives from organizations of persons living with HIV and AIDS; (15) One (1) representative from a private organization with expertise in standard setting and service delivery; and (16-21) Six (6) representatives from NGOs working for the welfare or identified key populations. Except for members from government agencies, the members of the PNAC shall be appointed by the President of the Philippines. The heads of government agencies may be represented by an official whose rank shall not lower than an Assistant Secretary or its equivalent. The members of the PNAC shall be appointed not later than thirty (30) days after the date of the enactment of this Act. The PNAC shall meet at least once every quarter. The presence of the Chairperson or the Vice Chairperson of the PNAC, and at least ten (10) other PNAC members and/or permanent representatives shall constitute a quorum to do business, and a majority vote of those present shall be sufficient to pass resolutions or render decisions. The Secretary of Health shall be the permanent Chairperson of the PNAC. However, the Vice Chairperson shall be elected from the government agency members, and shall serve for a term of three (3) years. Members representing CSOs shall serve for a term of three (3) years renewable upon recommendation of the Council for a maximum of two (2) consecutive terms.

Section 7

The PNAC shall be supported by a secretariat consisting of personnel with the necessary technical expertise and capacity that shall be conferred permanent appointments, subject to Civil Service rules and regulations. The Secretariat shall be headed by an Executive Director who shall be under the direct supervision of the Chairperson of the PNAC. The Secretariat shall perform the following functions: (a) Coordinate and manage the day-to-day affairs of the PNAC; (b) Assist in the formulation, monitoring, and evaluation of policies and the AMTP; (c) Provide technical assistance, support and advisory services to the PNAC and its external partners; (d) Assist the PNAC in identifying and building internal and external networks and partnerships; (e) Coordinate and support the efforts of the PNAC and its members to mobilize resources; (f) Serve as the repository of HIV and AIDS-related information; (g) Disseminate update, accurate, relevant, and comprehensive information about the country's HIV and AIDS situation to PNAC members, policy makers, and the media; (h) Provide administrative support to the PNAC; and (i) Coordinate, fund and implement, as directed by the PNAC, the interventions identified by the Council as gaps in the AMTP implementation, in cooperation with the CSOs and PLHIV community.

Section 8

AIDS Medium Term Plan (AMTP). The PNAC shall formulate and periodically update the six (6)-year AMTP, a national multi-sectoral strategic plan to prevent and control the spread of HIV and AIDS in the country. The AMTP shall include the following. (a) The country's target and strategies in addressing the HIV and AIDS situation; (b) The prevention, treatment care and support, and other components of the country's response; (c) The operationalization of the program and identification of the government agencies that shall implement the program, including the designated office within each agency responsible for overseeing, coordinating, facilitating, and monitoring the implementation of its AIDS program for the national to the local levels; and (d) The budgetary requirements and a corollary investment plan of each government agency specified in the AMTP, and shall identify the sources of funds for its implementation.

Section 9

The National HIV and AIDS and STI Prevention and Control Program (NASPCP) of the DOH, which shall be composed of qualified medical specialist and support personnel with permanent appointments, and with adequate yearly budget, shall coordinate with the PNAC for the implementation of the health sector's HIV and AIDS and STI response as identified in the AMTP. The Epidemiology Bureau shall maintain a comprehensive HIV and AIDS monitoring and evaluation program that shall serve the following purposes: (a) Determine and monitor the magnitude and progression of HIV and AIDS in the Philippines and regularly provide a list of priority areas with high magnitude of HIV and AIDS cases and co-infections to help the PNAC evaluate the adequacy and efficacy of HIV prevention and treatment programs being employed; (b) Receive, collate, process, and evaluate all HIV-and-AIDS-related medical reports from all hospitals, clinics, laboratories and testing centers, including HIV-related deaths and relevant data from public and private hospitals, clinics, laboratories and testing centers, including HIV-related deaths and relevant data from public and private hospitals, various data banks or information systems; Provided, That it shall adopt a coding system that ensures anonymity and confidentiality; and (c) Submit, through its Secretariat, quarterly and annual reports to the PNAC containing the findings of its monitoring and evaluation activities in compliance with this mandate.

Section 10

The country's response to the IV and AIDS situation shall be anchored on the principle of human rights and human dignity. Public health concerns shall be aligned with internationally-recognized human rights instruments and standards. Towards this end, the members of the PNAC, in cooperation with CSOs, and in collaboration with the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Commission on Human Rights (CHR), shall ensure the delivery of non-discriminatory HIV and AIDS services by government and private HIV and AIDS service provider. Further, the DOJ and CHR, in coordination with the PNAC, shall take the lead in developing redress mechanisms for PLHIV and key affected populations to ensure that their civil, political, economic, and social rights are protected. The PNAC shall cooperate with local government units (LGUs) to strengthen existing mediation and reconciliation mechanisms at the local level.