A week before the State of the Nation Address (SONA), groups of physicians as well as cybersecurity and data protection professionals have expressed their support for the Konektadong Pinoy bill, which aims to open the data transmission market to more competition and improve Internet services in the county.
In a joint statement, the medical community warned that poor digital infrastructure “threatens to stymie or even reverse hard-won improvements to the Philippine healthcare system.”
Citing data from the the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), they noted that about 19,000 barangays — 45% of all barangays — still lack digital infrastructure, and 37.5% of households remain unconnected. This means that millions of Filipinos and their healthcare providers must still rely on pen and paper.
“Without connectivity, many rural health units cannot view or submit electronic records and conduct other critical tasks. This represents a barrier to healthcare access for many communities in the countryside,” said Dr. Hector Santos, president of the Philippine Medical Association.
The statement highlighted how poor connectivity limits access to Health Information Systems (HIS) and Health Information Technology (Health IT) that “improve the quality of patient care and patient outcomes.”
Despite the Universal Health Care Law (RA 11223) mandating electronic medical records, many facilities — especially in rural areas — remain non-compliant due to inadequate digital infrastructure.
“Connectivity was our main problem in piloting primary care in a rural and remote site,” added Dr. Antonio Dans, president of the Asia Pacific Center for Evidence-Based Health Care.
To address these digital challenges, the medical practitioners endorsed the Konektadong Pinoy bill as “key to giving healthcare professionals the tools they need, and Filipinos the care they deserve.” They emphasized how the bill could empower doctors in remote areas and patients with disabilities by enabling access to digital records and virtual consultations.
The groups also cited a drop in telemedicine use since the pandemic — largely due to poor Internet connectivity in the country.
Meanwhile, cybersecurity and data privacy experts from the National Association of Data Protection Officers of the Philippines (Nadpop) and the Philippine Computer Emergency Response Team (PH-CERT) assert that contrary to claims by a few groups against Konektadong Pinoy, the bill actually addresses long-standing gaps that have resulted in inadequate and underprotected digital infrastructure.
They argue that delaying the bill’s passage extends a structurally outdated system that has made the Philippines dependent on a couple of dominant market players and lag behind its Asean neighbors.
“The Konektadong Pinoy bill is the courageous legal hammer that will smash the monopoly of big telcos which have lamentably neglected the full development of the Philippines’ telecoms infrastructure for several decades,” said Sam Jacoba, founding president of Nadpop in a statement quoted by BusinessWorld on June 13.
According to the group, the greater risk lies in preserving the status quo where cybersecurity enforcement is fragmented and standards either absent or inconsistent. The Konektadong Pinoy bill mandates regulators to set and enforce cybersecurity rules specific to the data transmission sector.
By lowering structural barriers to market entry, advocates said Konektadong Pinoy not only promotes competition but also strengthens the country’s digital infrastructure by encouraging multiple network operators, thus preventing a single point of failure or attack.
“A critical reading of the Konektadong Pinoy bill would reveal that the concerns and issues raised by other groups or organizations are unfounded. While the concerns and issues raised are valid, the bill includes safeguards that address them,” said Angel “Lito” Averia, president of the PH-CERT and co-founder of the Asean Japan Cybersecurity Community Alliance.
Under the proposed measure, cybersecurity measures apply to all network operators. Section 9 of the ratified bill requires all Data Transmission Industry Participants (DTIPs) to either obtain a third-party certification for ISO/IEC 27001 or comply with cybersecurity standards prescribed by the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT). Cybersecurity requirements must be secured within two years of registration, after which a DTIP will be penalized.
Through Konektadong Pinoy, DTIPs will also be subjected to a cybersecurity performance audit as a requirement for their continued operations and license renewal.
At present, most Internet service providers are not subject to any mandatory cybersecurity standards.
Supporters of the Konektadong Pinoy bill also refute claims that the bill would weaken regulatory oversight. The bill requires prior National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) authorization for an entity operating international gateways and backbone facilities. It subjects DTIPs to vetting and auditing, including national security reviews, and prohibits the entry of foreign government-controlled and state-owned entities in the data transmission industry.
Aside from Nadpop and PH-CERT, the latest expression of support for Konektadong Pinoy came from the Philippine Cable and Telecommunications Association, Inc. (PCTA), Game Developers Association of the Philippines (GDAP), Global Digital Inclusion Partnership (GDIP), and Web3 Pangasinan. Also joining them is the Jesse M. Robredo Institute of Governance, a research and training organization based at the De La Salle University.
The signatories join a growing coalition – including 35 ICT industry, business chambers, public sector, and civil society groups; 53 medical and healthcare associations; the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (ULAP); the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI); the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines (FINEX), and the Asia Pacific Network Information Centre (APNIC) Foundation — who have called for the enactment of Konektadong Pinoy.
