Para enmendar el subinciso (a) del inciso (1) del Articulo 2.04 de la Ley 26-2017, según enmendada, conocida como la “Ley de Cumplimiento con el Plan Fiscal” declarar exentos a los empleados que ofrecen servicios de salud de las disposiciones de la Ley 26-2017, reconocidos como un servicio esencial, sujeto a la protección presupuestaria contra recortes y ajustes que afecten la prestación de servicios y que deben tener la más alta prioridad dentro de la confección del Presupuesto Operacional Gubernamental de las agencias, corporaciones e instrumentalidades públicas y en la evaluación presupuestaria de planes fiscales sometidos por parte del Gobierno, según dispone la Ley Núm. 101 de 8 de noviembre de 2022.

2025-2028 Session

Designates health-service workers as essential and shields health budgets from cuts, prioritizing health in government budget formulation and fiscal planning.

Referido a Comisión(es)

Summary of Bill PC 883

Purpose and intent

PC 883 proposes to amend the “Ley de Cumplimiento con el Plan Fiscal” (Law 26-2017) to exempt employees who provide health services from certain provisions of Law 26-2017. The bill would recognize health-service work as an essential service and require budgetary protections to prevent cuts or adjustments that would impair health-service delivery. It also would mandate that health services receive the highest priority in the preparation of the Government’s Operational Budget for agencies, corporations, and public instrumentalities, and in the budgetary evaluation of fiscal plans submitted by the Government, consistent with Law No. 101 of November 8, 2022.

Key provisions

Amends sub-subsection (a) of subsection (1) of Article 2.04 of Law 26-2017, as amended.

Declares employees who provide health services as essential workers.

Applies budgetary protection to health-service provision, shielding it from cuts or budget adjustments that would hinder service delivery.

Establishes that health-service budgets must have the highest priority in:

The formulation of the Government’s Operational Budget for agencies, corporations, and public instrumentalities.
The budgetary evaluation of fiscal plans submitted by the Government (per Law No. 101 of 2022).

Affected parties and scope

Primary beneficiaries: health-service employees and the health-service delivery sector within public agencies, corporations, and instrumentalities.

Indirect impact on public budgeting and resource allocation processes by elevating the priority level of health services in budgeting and fiscal planning.

Fiscal and budgetary implications

Introduces stronger protections for health-service funding, potentially limiting flexibility to reallocate funds away from health services during budget reductions or re-prioritization.

Could influence overall agency and instrumentality budgeting by elevating health services to the top priority, in line with the essential-services designation.

Aligns with Law No. 101 (2022) regarding fiscal plan evaluation, reinforcing health-service emphasis within fiscal planning and budgeting.

Procedural and timeline notes

Introduced: September 29, 2025.

Actions:

Filed (Radicado) on 2025-09-29.
Appears in the House’s First Reading (Primera Lectura).
Referred to Committee(s) on 2025-09-29.

Next steps: committee hearings and potential amendments, followed by floor consideration and movements to the other chamber (if applicable) and final enactment steps.

Observations

The bill focuses on safeguarding health services during fiscal adjustments by embedding essential-status and budget priority into the statutory framework. It mirrors policy aims to protect health-system capacity in the face of fiscal constraints.