Updated for the Philippine legal and administrative framework as it stood after the COVID-19 public health emergency period. This article synthesizes statutes and long-standing DOH/DILG practices to help contact tracers, LGUs, and employers understand who qualifies, how much, and how to document claims.

1) Legal Foundations

Primary statute. The Health Emergency Allowance (HEA) is created by the Public Health Emergency Benefits and Allowances for Health Care Workers Act (often cited as RA 11712). It replaced the earlier Special Risk Allowance (SRA) regime and applies retroactively to the public health emergency period beginning 1 July 2021 and ending upon the lifting of the national public health emergency.

Policy issuances. The Department of Health (DOH) issued implementing rules, administrative orders, and department memoranda detailing:

covered workers and workplaces,
the risk-based monthly HEA amounts,
documentary requirements and validation mechanics,
fund flows to public and private facilities and to LGUs.

Tax treatment. HEA and related benefits under the statute are exempt from income tax and not subject to withholding, consistent with the law’s express exemption for statutory emergency benefits.

No double recovery. A worker cannot be paid both SRA and HEA for the same period. For months before 1 July 2021, the SRA rules apply; for months from 1 July 2021 until the emergency was lifted, HEA applies.

2) Who Is Potentially Covered: Where Contact Tracers Fit

RA 11712 uses functional participation in the COVID-19 response, not just job titles, to define coverage. In practice, contact tracers qualify if they meet all of the following pillars:

Nature of work. They performed contact tracing, case investigation, surveillance, data validation, or related epidemiologic support as part of the COVID-19 response.
Assignment. They were formally assigned (through deployment or engagement orders, job contracts, or office memoranda) to:
- a health facility (public or private), or
- a health system unit (e.g., LGU City/Municipal Health Office, RHU, BHERT, surveillance/epidemiology unit), or
- an official contact-tracing team recognized by the LGU, DILG, DOH Center for Health Development (CHD), or a national agency.
Physical duty. They physically reported for work (on-site or field work) in the month claimed. Purely remote work, by itself, typically does not attract HEA unless the employer’s risk assessment classifies the role as exposed and the worker had documented field or facility-based duty in the month.
Timeframe. Duty fell within the covered months of the public health emergency under HEA (generally July 2021 up to the date the emergency was lifted).
Employment status. Any status can qualify—plantilla, COS, contract of service, job order, project-based (e.g., DILG-hired contact tracers), agency-hired, volunteers, or those engaged by NGOs/private providers—so long as the assignment and work performed meet the criteria above and are validated by the authorized head of facility/unit.

Key implication for DILG/LGU contact tracers. Even if paid through a DILG or LGU project, a contact tracer may be HEA-eligible if they were deployed to an LGU health office, BHERT, or CHD-recognized tracing team and performed field or facility-based tracing during the covered month. Those deployed exclusively to non-health offices (e.g., administrative offices with no COVID operations) generally do not qualify.

3) The Risk-Based Monthly Amounts

HEA is risk-tiered per month of eligible service (pro-rated for partial months when rules require), based on the validated risk exposure classification for the worker’s assignment:

High risk – ₱9,000 per month Typical for sustained direct interaction with confirmed/suspect cases in high-transmission settings; e.g., frequent household/close-contact field investigations, facility-based case interviews in COVID wards, transport of suspect/confirmed cases, or routine entry into isolation/quarantine facilities.
Medium risk – ₱6,000 per month Typical for regular face-to-face interaction in clinics/RHUs or field work with intermittent exposure to suspect cases, swabbing centers, vaccination sites with triage overlap, or data verification that requires periodic on-site contact.
Low risk – ₱3,000 per month Typical for mostly office-based tasks with occasional on-site validation, limited face-to-face interaction, or outdoor work with minimal close contact and strict controls.

Who assigns the risk tier? The facility head/LGU health officer (or their HEA Evaluation/Validation Committee) applies DOH matrices to each position/assignment per month, considering actual duty rosters and nature of exposure. A contact tracer’s risk tier can change month-to-month as assignments shift.

4) Coverage Periods and Cut-offs

Start of HEA coverage: 1 July 2021 (immediately following the SRA period).
End of coverage: The effective date of lifting of the national public health emergency (HEA is payable only for months or partial months within the emergency period).
Partial months: If a tracer worked only part of a month (e.g., mid-month hiring, reassignment, or separation), pro-ration may apply per DOH guidance (commonly based on days with actual, validated duty).

5) Documentary Requirements (What Contact Tracers Should Keep)

To substantiate eligibility and tiering, expect these core documents to be required at facility/LGU level:

Appointment/Contract/Engagement Letter (or Volunteer Agreement).
Deployment/Assignment Order indicating the specific unit (e.g., CHO, RHU, BHERT, Surveillance/Operations Center) and duties (contact tracing/case investigation).
Daily Time Records (DTRs)/Timesheets or Duty Rosters signed by the supervisor.
Monthly Risk Exposure Classification approved by the head of office/HEA committee.
Proof of actual field/facility duty, such as:
- field investigation logs, case investigation forms (CIFs),
- activity/mission orders,
- line lists with assigned investigator,
- debriefs or BHERT reports,
- official travel orders or trip tickets where applicable.
Government-issued ID and payroll details (for fund disbursement) and acknowledgment receipts for released months.

Tip for project-based tracers: If your HR/payroll is outside the health office (e.g., DILG field office), coordinate early with the City/Municipal Health Office so your assignment and monthly risk tier are validated within the health line-unit—that is often the key to inclusion in the HEA payroll reports.

6) Funding Channels and Who Pays

Public facilities/LGUs: Funds are typically downloaded from DOH to the health facility or LGU (or through CHDs) based on consolidated payrolls submitted and validated.
Private facilities/NGOs: DOH releases may also cover eligible non-government providers participating in the response, upon submission of validated lists and documents.
Project-hired contact tracers: If engaged by DILG/LGUs but assigned to health units or official tracing teams, they are usually included in the LGU health office payroll submission for HEA.

7) Common Edge Cases (and How They’re Usually Resolved)

“We did mostly phone interviews; are we covered?” If you never did field/facility on-site work during the month, classification tends to fall to low or may be ineligible if the role is wholly remote and not validated as exposed. Where phone interviews were part of a hybrid field assignment (e.g., follow-ups before/after home visits), coverage generally continues with low/medium tier depending on exposure.
“We were seconded to the LGU’s data team; no fieldwork that month.” If the secondment is purely office-based with no close contact, expect low or no HEA depending on the committee’s risk matrix.
“I was quarantined/isolated due to confirmed COVID-19.” HEA is for days actually on duty. Periods of quarantine/isolation are typically addressed under separate benefits (e.g., compensation for HCW infection) if the illness is work-acquired and properly documented.
“Our team dissolved before the emergency ended.” You may still be eligible for the months you actually served, supported by assignments and DTRs.
“Transferred mid-month from CHO tracing to a non-health office.” The month may be pro-rated (days in eligible assignment vs. not), with the risk tier reflecting the days in the eligible post.

8) Process Overview: From Validation to Payout

Compilation at unit level. Supervisors finalize monthly duty rosters, risk tiers, and supporting logs.
HEA Committee/Head validation. The facility/LGU health office validates who is eligible that month and at what tier.
Consolidated payroll submission to CHD/DOH (or as routed locally), attaching required documents.
Fund download to the facility/LGU (or direct settlement for private providers as allowed).
Disbursement to workers, with acknowledgment receipts and payroll records retained for audit.

Audit readiness. Keep originals/scans for at least five years (standard public audit horizon). Mismatches between DTRs, assignment orders, and risk tiers are the most common audit issues—ensure monthly alignment.

9) Rights, Remedies, and Practical Tips

Ask for the risk matrix used. You are entitled to know your monthly classification and how it was determined.
Appeal internally first. If excluded or down-tiered, write the facility/LGU HEA committee citing your specific duties and dates, attaching mission orders and field logs.
Escalate with documentation. Unresolved disputes can be elevated to the DOH CHD for technical guidance.
Avoid gaps. Maintain continuous paper trails: deployment orders when assignments change, daily sign-ins on field days, and brief field reports.
Coordinate across agencies. For DILG-hired tracers embedded in LGU health units, designate a focal person to bridge HR/payroll and the health office so you’re included in the correct payroll window.

10) Quick Eligibility Checklist for Contact Tracers

You likely qualify for HEA for a given month if YES to all:

I performed contact tracing/case investigation or closely related COVID-19 surveillance functions that month.
I had a written assignment to a health facility/health office/BHERT/official tracing team.
I reported physically on-site or in the field that month (even if not daily).
My supervisor/HEA committee assigned a risk tier to my role for that month.
The month falls between July 2021 and the end of the public health emergency.

If any answer is NO, eligibility is doubtful unless special facts (e.g., hybrid duty, temporary reassignment with fieldwork) are documented and validated.

11) Frequently Asked Questions

Q: I’m a volunteer tracer with no pay. Can I still get HEA? A: Yes—volunteer status does not bar eligibility. What matters is validated assignment, actual duty, and risk tier in an eligible unit.

Q: Our LGU outsourced tracing to a foundation. Are we covered? A: Potentially, if the foundation’s tracers were officially integrated into the LGU/CHO tracing operations (through MOA/assignment lists) and their monthly validation and payroll submission passed through the recognized channel.

Q: I worked only 6 days that month but all were field investigations. A: You may be pro-rated for that month; the risk tier could still be medium/high depending on exposure.

Q: Who decides the exact peso amount I receive? A: The law sets the tier amounts; your facility/LGU committee decides the tier per month based on your validated risk exposure and days actually on duty.

Q: Is HEA part of my basic pay? A: No. It’s a statutory allowance paid in addition to your compensation and is tax-exempt.

12) Compliance Corner (For LGUs and Facilities)

Issue written assignments that clearly place contact tracers under CHO/RHU/BHERT/SEPU/ESU or the facility—avoid generic “admin” postings.
Keep monthly tiering sheets signed by the head of office.
Harmonize DTRs and mission orders with field logs—auditors look for consistency.
Submit on time to your CHD to avoid lapsing of allotments.
Notify workers promptly of inclusion/exclusion and provide appeal windows.

Bottom Line

Contact tracers are eligible for the Health Emergency Allowance when they are formally assigned to a health facility or health-system unit, actually perform tracing or related COVID-19 response duties during the covered months, and are validated for a monthly risk tier. Employment status (plantilla, JO, project-based, or volunteer) does not by itself determine eligibility—assignment, actual duty, and validated risk exposure do.

If you’re a contact tracer, collect your papers, verify your monthly tier, and coordinate with your LGU health office or facility so your HEA claims are properly included and documented.