The Department of Health (DOH) has announced that senior citizens are no longer required to present purchase booklets to avail of the 20% discount on medicines and medical devices.
This change follows Administrative Order No. 2024-0017, issued on Monday by Health Secretary Teodoro “Ted” Herbosa. The order amends previous guidelines under Republic Act No. 9994, or the “Expanded Senior Citizen Act of 2010,” by removing the booklet requirement for purchasing prescription and over-the-counter medicines, as well as medical devices.
“The Department recognizes that requiring senior citizens to present purchase booklets during every transaction to avail the 20% discount results in undue burden and difficulties,” the administrative order stated.
In February, the National Commission of Senior Citizens (NCSC) urged businesses to adopt digital solutions for monitoring senior citizen transactions. NCSC Chairman Franklin Quijano proposed replacing the purchase booklets with a centralized database to streamline processes and prevent abuse of discount benefits.
The NCSC hopes Congress and the Department of Information and Communications Technology will support the development of such a database to improve efficiency and transparency.
