A record P1.1 billion has been earmarked in the proposed 2026 national budget to expand medical scholarships and require new doctors to serve in the public health system, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian said.
Gatchalian said the Medical Scholarship and Return Service (MSRS) Program will receive P1.1 billion this fiscal year, the first time the allocation breached the P1 billion mark.
He said the funding will support 1,000 new medical scholars and continue supporting 2,869 current scholars who are training to become doctors.
The senator said the allocation aligns with the implementation of the Doktor Para sa Bayan Act, or Republic Act No. 11509, which established the MSRS for deserving students in state universities and colleges (SUCs) or in partner private higher education institutions in regions where no SUCs offer medical courses.
Under the program, scholars who pass the Physician Licensure Examination will serve in the public health system and render at least one year of return service for every scholarship year availed of.
“Bahagi ng makasaysayang pondong pang-edukasyon ngayong taon ang scholarship para sa susunod na henerasyon ng mga doktor. Mahalaga ito upang matugunan ang kakulangan sa mga doktor at masiguro ang sapat na serbisyong medikal para sa bawat Pilipino,” said Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance.
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