4/29/2020 E-Library - Information At Your Fingertips: Printer Friendly the illness or injury occurred during the term of the contract and that it is work-related. To the petitioners, Armando failed to prove these requirements, as his medical records during and soon after his employment did not show that he ever suffered from CAD during the term of the contract. The petitioners added that since Dr. Alegre has declared Armando fit to work, Armando was bound by such declaration, pursuant to Section 20-B, paragraphs 2 and 3 of the POEA-SEC. Citing the Court’s declarations, the petitioners argue that the doctor most qualified to assess Armando’s disability grade is the doctor who regularly monitored and treated his health, which, in this case, was the company-designated physician – Dr. Alegre. Further, the petitioners contend that “hypertension, hyperlipidemia, obesity and alcoholism,” which Armando added as grounds for his claim for disability benefits, were the direct result of his willful acts and wrong lifestyle choice for which he alone should be held responsible. As these are not work-related, they are not compensable under the POEA-SEC. The petitioners also posit that Armando’s hypertension was not even acquired during the term of the latter’s contract but was a pre-existing condition which he did not disclose during his PEME. And while hypertension is listed as an occupational disease under Section 32-A, paragraph 20, Armando’s willful concealment of this information in his PEME disqualifies him from claiming benefits under the POEA-SEC, pursuant to its Section 20-E. Assuming that this concealment does not disqualify Armando from claiming benefits, he still failed to present, by laboratory test results, that his hypertension impaired the functions of his body organs, as required by Section 32-A. Finally, the petitioners take exception to the CA’s award of sickness allowance counted at 120 days instead of 92 days. They argue that Dr. Alegre declared Armando fit to work on May 12, 2003; hence, the sickness allowance should be counted only until this date, or a total of 92 days counted from February 10, 2003 when he disembarked from the vessel. They also question the award of attorney’s fees for Armando’s failure to prove bad faith on their part. The Case for the Respondents Relying on the ruling of the CA, Armando contends[36] that a seafarer’s entitlement to disability benefits automatically accrues by reason of death or illness. He argues that in claims for disability benefits under the POEA-SEC, the presumption of compensability and aggravation of the illness exists as long as the illness occurred during the term of the contract. The employer has the burden to rebut these presumptions which, in this case, the petitioners failed to do. For Armando, his various medical records more than adequately proved that his illness arose during the term of his contract, that such illness is workrelated, and that the nature of his work and the risk factors with which he was exposed to during such employment aggravated his illness. Armando points out that the factors that contributed to his permanent disability are all related to his work and the primary and antecedent causes of his illness are listed as occupational diseases under Section 32-A of the POEA-SEC. Further, Armando contends that since the PEME is exploratory, his clean bill of health after undergoing the PEME and prior to his employment proves that his illness occurred during, and was aggravated by, his employment. Lastly, Armando insists that the petitioners are elibrary.judiciary.gov.ph/thebookshelf/showdocsfriendly/1/56107 5/17