Section 22Sec./Art. 22

Right to a Fair Medical Assessment. - Seafarers shall have the right to a fair medical assessment in the event of injury arising from accidents onboard. Overseas seafarers shall have the right to seek a second opinion from accredited clinics of the Department of Health (DOH) or from other competent and licensed physicians, whenever there is a doubt on the medical assessment of an examining physician or clinic which negatively affects the overseas seafarer's immediate employment. If the clinic or physician selected by the overseas seafarer disagrees with the first assessment, a third doctor (from any DOH-accredited clinic or a DOH regional or provincial hospital), jointly selected by the employer and the seafarer, may be hired by the shipowner or manning agency to make a third medical assessment at no expense to the seafarer.

The findings of the third doctor shall be final and binding on both parties.