Eligibility for Health Emergency Allowance (HEA) for Contact Tracers in the Philippines

As of Philippine law and policy in force through 2023–2024, summarized for practical use. This is general information, not legal advice.

1) What the HEA is—and why it matters

The Health Emergency Allowance (HEA) is a statutory cash allowance given per month to qualifying workers who serve during a declared public health emergency (PHE). It replaced earlier pandemic-era benefits such as the Special Risk Allowance (SRA) and Active Hazard Duty Pay (AHDP) for COVID-19. The HEA is tax-exempt, and the amount depends on risk exposure (low, moderate, or high).

Typical monthly tiers used by the Department of Health (DOH) during COVID-19 implementation:

Low risk: ₱3,000 / month
Moderate risk: ₱6,000 / month
High risk: ₱9,000 / month

Key point for contact tracers: Eligibility turns on where and how you served—not on your job title or employment status.

2) Legal bases and implementing architecture (plain-English)

Republic Act No. 11712 (Public Health Emergency Benefits and Allowances for Health Care Workers Act, 2022) created the HEA and made the benefits tax-exempt.
Implementing rules and DOH/DBM issuances operationalized the program (including the interim “One COVID-19 Allowance” or OCA, later aligned to HEA), set risk tiers, required lists from facilities, and established validation and fund flow.
Effectivity window: HEA applies only during a declared PHE. For COVID-19, the national PHE was lifted on 21 July 2023. Unpaid/validated periods within the PHE can still be funded subject to appropriations and validation.

3) Who can qualify in principle

RA 11712 covers two broad groups assigned in or to health facilities during the PHE:

Health care workers (HCWs) — e.g., physicians, nurses, midwives.
Non-HCWs involved in the response — e.g., administrative, logistics, security, utility, EMTs, and other personnel whose work is necessary to the facility’s COVID-19 (or other PHE) operations.

Status does not matter: permanent, casual, contract of service, job order, agency-hired, volunteers, trainees/interns, and similar categories can all qualify if the assignment and risk criteria are met.

4) What counts as a “health facility” (for HEA purposes)

The law and DOH issuances have treated the following as eligible worksites when they are part of the official health response:

Public and private hospitals (national, DOH-retained, local, private)
Rural Health Units (RHUs), Barangay Health Stations (BHSs), city/municipal/provincial health offices when functioning as health facilities
Temporary Treatment and Monitoring Facilities (TTMFs), field hospitals
Laboratories and molecular testing sites
Vaccination sites, swabbing/triage areas, quarantine/isolation facilities formally established or operated by a health authority

If a worksite is not a health facility (e.g., a purely administrative LGU or DILG office), HEA generally does not apply unless the worker is officially assigned to a health facility or designated response site.

5) Risk exposure classification (drives the amount)

Facilities classify each eligible worker per month based on actual duties:

High risk: routine, direct, frequent exposure to suspect/confirmed cases or contaminated environments (e.g., triage, ER COVID zone, swabbing teams, isolation wards).
Moderate risk: intermittent/limited direct exposure, or work within COVID-19 service areas but with controls.
Low risk: supportive roles within the facility with minimal exposure.

Documentation (see §8) must substantiate the classification.

6) The contact tracer’s specific situation

A. When contact tracers are eligible

A contact tracer can qualify for HEA if all of the following are true:

Assignment to an eligible health facility or DOH-recognized response site.
- Examples: stationed at an RHU/BHS to do case investigation; assigned to a swabbing site, vaccination site, isolation facility, or TTMF; embedded in a hospital’s epidemiology or infection prevention unit; regularly conducting field investigations originating from a facility (and included in that facility’s certified list).
Inclusion in the facility’s certified personnel list for HEA, with risk level per month.
- Being agency-hired, JO, or LGU-funded does not disqualify you; the list is by function and assignment, not by plantilla.
Actual physical reporting during the covered month within the PHE period, with duty records.

Typical examples that have qualified in practice

LGU-hired tracers based at the RHU who perform case investigation + swabbing, reflected in rosters and exposure logs → usually moderate or high risk.
Tracers assigned to TTMFs or hospital triage for case investigation → typically high risk.
Tracers operating vaccination site triage/AEFI monitoring under the facility’s command → often low to moderate risk.

B. When contact tracers are not eligible

Tracers purely field-based under non-health offices (e.g., DILG/LGU management office) without formal assignment to a facility or recognized response site.
Tracers engaged outside the PHE window (e.g., after 21 July 2023 for COVID-19).
Months with no physical reporting or no validated risk classification.
Tracers already fully compensated under earlier SRA/AHDP for the same period (double payment for the same month is not allowed; HEA is in lieu of SRA/AHDP for overlapping periods).

Historical note: Under Bayanihan II SRA, many contact tracers were not considered “health workers” unless placed in facilities; RA 11712 broadened coverage to include non-HCWs in facilities, which is where many tracers later qualified—but the facility-based requirement remained pivotal.

7) Amounts, proration, and overlaps

Per-month, per-risk-tier amounts (₱3k/₱6k/₱9k).
Proration is typically allowed for partial months (e.g., mid-month start or quarantine) based on DOH guidance used in validations.
No double-dipping for the same period with SRA/AHDP/OCA; the program in effect for that month governs.
Separate from Hazard Pay under AO 26 (₱500/day) for government personnel physically reporting during ECQ/MECQ; these are distinct programs and can coexist if rules are met and periods differ.

8) Documentation you (or your facility) should prepare

Assignment Orders / Designations placing the tracer in a specific facility/site.
Certified HEA-Eligible Personnel List (by the facility head), indicating name, role, status, and risk level per month.
Duty Rosters / Daily Time Records (DTRs) or equivalent proof of physical reporting.
Exposure Logs / Task Descriptions (e.g., swabbing schedules, case investigation logs, triage assignments).
Contracts/MOAs (for JO/agency-hired), linking the tracer’s services to the facility.
Valid IDs / Payroll information for fund release.

For LGU-hired tracers, a certification from the City/Municipal Health Officer (as facility head) is often the linchpin.

9) How validation and funding typically flow

Facility compiles and certifies the monthly list and risk tiers.
DOH Center for Health Development (CHD) validates and consolidates claims.
Funds (subject to appropriations/allotments) are released to the employer/facility or LGU for payment to individuals.
Workers receive the HEA through payroll or cash card; tax-exempt treatment applies.
Appeals/Reconsideration: If excluded, submit a written request to the facility and/or CHD with supporting documents (see §8). Keep copies and proof of filing.

10) Common pitfalls for contact tracers—and how to fix them

“Our team is under DILG, not the RHU.”
- Fix: Secure a joint certification or order embedding the team within the RHU/health facility for the covered months; ensure inclusion in the facility’s HEA list.
“We were field-only, no facility base.”
- Fix: If you actually worked at swabbing/vax sites, TTMFs, triage, document those sites as health facilities or recognized response sites, with schedules and supervisor sign-offs.
“Payroll rejected us as non-plantilla/agency.”
- Fix: Cite that employment status is not a disqualifier; what matters is assignment to a health facility and validated risk exposure.
“We worked in June–July 2023—are we covered?”
- Answer: Yes, if within the declared PHE and validated by the facility for those months; not after 21 July 2023 (for COVID-19).

11) Practical eligibility checklist (for a contact tracer)

Were you assigned—on paper—to a health facility or DOH-recognized response site during a month when a PHE was in effect?
Did you physically report and perform COVID-19 (or other PHE) response functions during that month?
Does the facility’s certified HEA list include your name and risk tier for that month?
Do you have DTRs/rosters and task/exposure descriptions to back it up?
Are you not already paid SRA/AHDP/OCA for that same month?

If you can tick all five, your claim is on strong footing.

12) Related/alternative benefits to consider

COVID-19 Hazard Pay (AO 26, 2020): For government personnel who physically reported during ECQ/MECQ—often available to LGU contact tracers even when HEA is not.
Life insurance, compensation for death/illness, and other RA 11712 benefits, where applicable and properly documented.
Local incentives under LGU ordinances.

13) Action steps if you believe you qualify

Ask your facility head (e.g., CHO/MHO/RHU head) to confirm your inclusion in the HEA list and risk tiering for each month served.
Compile assignment orders, DTRs, site schedules, and task logs.
If excluded, file a written reconsideration with the facility and DOH-CHD attaching your documentation and citing your facility-based assignment and exposure.
Track fund releases and maintain receipts/payroll stubs once paid.

14) Quick answers to frequently asked questions

Are contact tracers automatically eligible? No. Eligibility is not by title. It depends on facility-based assignment and risk-tier validation.
Do volunteers or agency-hired tracers qualify? Yes—if officially assigned to a facility/recognized site and validated for risk exposure.
Is HEA taxable? No. HEA under RA 11712 is tax-exempt.
What if my work was after the COVID-19 PHE was lifted? HEA does not apply outside a declared PHE. Future PHEs could trigger HEA again under the same law.

Bottom line

Contact tracers can receive the Health Emergency Allowance when they are formally assigned to, and actually serve in, an eligible health facility or recognized response site during a declared public health emergency, with documented duties and validated monthly risk exposure. Employment status (plantilla vs. JO/agency/volunteer) does not bar eligibility; facility-based assignment and documentation are what count.