Deployment cap on health workers increases to 7000 from 3500

The Philippine government has raised the limit on health workers being deployed abroad, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) said.

POEA deputy administrator Villamor Ventura Plan said the deployment cap has been pegged at 7,000. This figure is higher than the 3,500-cap set in 2021, the official said.

The Deputy Administrator said the POEA is also “in talks” with the Commission on Higher Education and the Department of Health if the government can maintain the limit.

This is necessary, the official said, because the Philippines also needs to determine its own demand for health workers. He noted that for instance, nurses also need to look for better opportunities and that it will be difficult from stopping them to do so.

The POEA is also in talks with the Commission on Higher Education and the Department of Health to see if the deployment cap will be maintained, Plan said, noting that the country’s demand for health workers must also be considered.

Recently, the government imposed an annual limit on the deployment of nurses and other health workers. The main consideration is to make sure the country has enough medical frontliners as COVID-19 rages on.

The POEA reported that nurses and other health care workers are in demand in Australia and New Zealand.

Plan also said countries continue to express willingness to reopen for Filipino workers. The most recent is Taiwan. Plan said the POEA currently has 5,000 workers that can be immediately deployed to Taiwan, as soon as Taiwan reopens its border on Feb. 15.

Aside from Taiwan, the Philippines also has an agreement to send health care workers to other countries, including Germany, eastern European countries, and the Middle East.

This article originally appeared on: https://manilastandard.net/news/314207210/ph-raises-cap-on-ofw-deployment.html