Executive Summary T he National Human Rights Situation Report is an annual report issued by the Commission on Human Rights of the Philippines (CHR). For 2020, this report highlights key events that have transpired, particularly in the context of a global pandemic. Through an analysis of structural changes that affect human rights, such as new pieces of legislation and local ordinances, and developments in procedural mechanisms provided by State duty-bearers, this report aims to draw attention to the outcomes, particularly the societal and essentially the human rights impact of the policies of the government. The report comprises four key sections. The first section covers Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ESCR), wherein special emphasis is given to issues involving the right to health, as it is interdependent and interrelated with other human rights, given the huge impact of COVID-19 on the lives of Filipinos. The report takes special note of how the COVID-19 affects the physical aspect of the Filipinos right to health; it’s continuing effect on the mental health of the people living in the Philippines, and the subsequent derogation of rights by the state. Various local polling firms provide empirical support on the mental toll that is experienced due to job losses, uncertainties, loss of lives of and kins, and forced prolonged confinement of people in their respective residences. The report presents data on various core obligations by the Philippine’ State against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic. Among these are the following: (1) access to health facilities, goods and services on a non-discriminatory basis; (2) provision of essential medicines; (3) equitable distribution of all health facilities; and (4) adoption and implementation of a national public health strategy and plan of action that addresses the health concerns of the whole population. Using these core obligations as indicators, the report notes that there has been uneven access to health facilities in the different regions in the country. The most emblematic of these concerns had to do with the issue of testing for COVID-19 cases. As the pandemic raged on, in the third quarter of 2020, the Department of Health (DOH) only recorded about 8,000 tests per day. This indicates that during the first few months of the pandemic, there was inadequate access to preventive health care in response to COVID-19. Only in August did the DOH increase its daily testing capacity to 27,800 and addressed its data backlog. The resources for health facilities remain largely concentrated in urban centers thereby limiting the access of indigenous communities and internally displaced persons to health care. Furthermore, the national health strategy is largely shaped by a militaristic and police-centric approach which greatly affects the poor and displaced who cannot always afford to self-quarantine or get medical aid. Another important right that was severely affected by COVID-19 is the right to education. Physical face-to-face classes remain suspended. This has forced State education authorities to adopt other modalities of learning that can cater to the needs of millions of students throughout the country. Already, the digital divide has widened between those that consistently have access to Information and Communication Technology (ICT) infrastructure versus those that have to rely on modular learning using physical reading materials. The lack of adequate preparation by the government has forced those enrolled in public schools to delay their class opening nearly one and a half months later than their counterparts in the private sector.