Paulyn Jean Buenaflor Rosell-Ubial (born June 29, 1962) is a Filipino physician who served as

Secretary of Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare and other social security services. Some governments have separate ministers for mental health. Coun ...

on an ''ad interim'' basis under the Duterte administration. President Rodrigo Duterte nominated her in 2016, but the

Commission on Appointments The Commission on Appointments ( fil, Komisyon sa Paghirang, abbreviated as CA) is a constitutional body which confirms or rejects certain political appointments made by the President of the Philippines. The current commission was created by th ...

rejected her appointment in 2017. She spent her entire career in public health and was an assistant secretary of the

Department of Health A health department or health ministry is a part of government which focuses on issues related to the general health of the citizenry. Subnational entities, such as states, counties and cities, often also operate a health department of their ow ...

from 2008 to 2016.

Early life

Paulyn Jean Buenaflor Rosell was born on June 29, 1962, in

Iloilo City Iloilo City, officially the City of Iloilo ( hil, Siyudad/Dakbanwa sang Iloilo; fil, Lungsod ng Iloilo), is a 1st class Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Western Visayas region of the Philippines on t ...

. Her father, Neon Rosell, was a Zoology professor at the

University of the Philippines Diliman , image = University of The Philippines seal.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = Official Logo of UP Diliman , motto = Honor and Excellence , established = February 12, 194 ...

(UP Diliman), while her mother was Maria Buenaflor. For elementary and high school, she attended the University of the Philippines Integrated School in

Diliman Quezon City (, ; fil, Lungsod Quezon ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read in Filipino as Kyusi), is the most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 2,960,048 people. It was fou ...

. She then earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Zoology from UP Diliman in 1983, and her

Doctor of Medicine Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. T ...

degree from the

University of the East The University of the East ( fil, Pamantasan ng Silangan), also known as UE, is a leading private university located in Manila, Philippines. Founded in 1946, business tycoon Lucio Tan acquired the university in 1990. UE was once labeled as the ...

in 1987. She completed her

internship An internship is a period of work experience offered by an organization for a limited period of time. Once confined to medical graduates, internship is used practice for a wide range of placements in businesses, non-profit organizations and gover ...

at the

Philippine General Hospital The Philippine General Hospital (also known as University of the Philippines–Philippine General Hospital or UP–Philippine General Hospital), simply referred to as UP–PGH or PGH, is a tertiary state-owned hospital administered and operated ...

. Her family owns a farm in

M'lang M'lang, officially the Municipality of M'lang ( Hiligaynon: ''Banwa sang M'lang;'' Maguindanaon: ''Inged nu Melang'', Jawi: ايڠايد نو ملڠ), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Cotabato, Philippines The Phili ...

, Cotabato. Her relatives, Rodolfo Buenaflor and Luigi Cuerpo, had served as mayors of the town.

Career

Department of Health

Ubial began her career as a volunteer rural physician in

Kidapawan Kidapawan, officially the City of Kidapawan ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Kidapawan; hil, Dakbanwa sang Kidapawan; Maguindanaon: ''Kuta nu Kidapawan'', Jawi: كوتا نو كيدڤاوان; Obo Monuvu: ''Ingod to Kidapawan''), is a 3rd class component c ...

, Cotabato in 1988. The following year, she became a medical specialist for the

(DOH) and was assigned to

Cotabato City Cotabato City, officially the City of Cotabato ( Maguindanaon: ''Kuta nu Kutawatu'', Jawi: كوتا نو كوتاواتو; Iranun: ''Bandar a Kotawato'', بندر ا كوتاواتو; fil, Lungsod ng Cotabato), is a third class independent c ...

. In 1990, she eventually became the assistant city health officer of Cotabato City. She was then assigned to the DOH headquarters in

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

in 1991, where she headed the Polio Eradication Unit. She also worked for other programs of the DOH, including the Communicable Disease Control Service and various

women's health Women's health differs from that of men in many unique ways. Women's health is an example of population health, where health is defined by the World Health Organization as "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not mer ...

programs. From 2001 to 2005, she was the assistant regional director of the

Western Visayas Western Visayas ( hil, Kabisay-an Nakatundan; tl, Kanlurang Kabisayaan or ''Kanlurang Visayas'') is an administrative region in the Philippines, numerically designated as Region VI. It consists of six provinces (Aklan, Antique, Capiz, Guimaras ...

Center for Health Development, and was later promoted to regional director of Davao Center for Health Development, serving from 2006 to 2008. In

Davao City Davao City, officially the City of Davao ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Dabaw; ), is a first class highly urbanized city in the Davao Region, Philippines. The city has a total land area of , making it the largest city in the Philippines in terms of lan ...

, she became acquainted with then-mayor Rodrigo Duterte. From 2008 to June 2016, she was an Assistant Secretary of the DOH. During her stint in Manila, she earned her Master of Public Health degree from UP Manila.

Secretary of Health

After Duterte won the

2016 presidential election This national electoral calendar for 2016 lists the national/ federal elections held in 2016 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *7 January: Kiri ...

, Ubial was named as the incoming

. She is an anti-tobacco advocate. She helped author Executive Order 26, which bans smoking in enclosed public places and transportation servicing the general population, except in designated smoking areas. The

(CA) did not approve of Ubial's appointment as Health Secretary on October 10, 2017, ending her ''

de facto ''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...

'' tenure. Kabayan Representative

Harry Roque Herminio "Harry" Lopez Roque Jr. (; born October 21, 1966) is a Filipino lawyer, politician, and former law professor. He served as the presidential spokesperson of President Rodrigo Duterte from 2017 to 2018 and from 2020 to 2021. He was the p ...

, lawyer Restituto Mendoza, and Potenciano Malvar, medical director of the General Miguel M. Malvar Medical Foundation officially filed opposition to her appointment. Her dealings with

PhilHealth The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) was created in 1995 to implement universal health coverage in the Philippines. It is a tax-exempt, government-owned and controlled corporation (GOCC) of the Philippines, and is attached to ...

was contentious, which led 150 of the organization's employees to oppose her appointment, citing her decision to suspend the allowances and salary adjustments of Philhealth's employees which caused "extreme demoralization". Former CEO and President of PhilHealth Hildegardes Dineros disputed the nature of his departure from Philhealth. He claimed that he was forcibly removed from his post by Ubial and did not voluntary resign as she claimed.

Later career

As of October 2020, Ubial is the head of the

Philippine Red Cross The Philippine Red Cross (PRC; fil, Krus na Pula ng Pilipinas) is a non-profit humanitarian organization and a member of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. The PRC was established in 1947, with roots in the Philippine Re ...

biomolecular laboratories.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ubial, Paulyn 1962 births Living people Duterte administration cabinet members Benigno Aquino III administration personnel Arroyo administration personnel Filipino public health doctors Filipino civil servants Filipino women civil servants People from Cotabato People from Iloilo City Secretaries of Health of the Philippines University of the East alumni Women members of the Cabinet of the Philippines Filipino women medical doctors 20th-century Filipino medical doctors 21st-century Filipino medical doctors 20th-century women physicians 21st-century women physicians Women public health doctors