Section 2Sec./Art. 2

Declaration of Policy. -It is hereby declared the policy of the State to protect and promote the right of health of the people through the formulation and implementation of policies and strategies for the appropriate generation, recruitment, retraining, regulation, retention and reassessment of the health workforce making it more attuned to the needs of the population. It is also the declared policy of the State to promote social justice by expanding access to quality education and creating opportunities for underprivileged individuals.

Towards this end, the State shall establish a medical scholarship and return service that will help deserving medical students pursue medical education and training in the field of health and medicine who shall eventually render services in government public health offices or government hospitals in their hometown or in any municipality in their home province or in any underserved municipality in any province, as part of their integration into the public health and medical service system. This shall ensure the availability of doctors who will provide quality basic, promotive, preventive and curative health care services in every municipality in the country, especially the underserved, remote, economically underdeveloped, distressed, conflict-afflicted and geographically disadvantaged areas.