Senate approves six local hospital bills

On Monday, 19 August, the Senate approved six local hospital bills on their third and final reading.

The approved bills are:

• House Bill No. 8426: Upgrades Bataan General Hospital in Balanga to a multi-specialty facility with a bed capacity of 1,000.

• House Bill No. 8483: Establishes the Northern Tagalog Regional Hospital, a Level II facility, in Rodriguez, Rizal.

• House Bill No. 8492: Creates the Victorias City General Hospital in Victorias, Negros Occidental.

• House Bill No. 9335: Upgrades Basilan General Hospital in Isabela to a Level III hospital, renaming it the Basilan Medical Center.

• House Bill No. 9623: Establishes a Level III general hospital in Bay, Laguna, known as the Laguna Regional Hospital.

• House Bill No. 9624: Establishes a Level II general hospital in San Jose, Nueva Ecija, named the Sen. Edgardo J. Angara General Hospital.

The bills were principally sponsored by Senator Christopher "Bong" Go, who thanked his colleagues for their support.

"Mr. President, I also would like to thank all of our colleagues for their support for the measures upgrading and establishing new hospitals. Maraming salamat po sa lahat ng mga kasamahan natin dito sa Senado," Go said.

He underscored the need for effective utilization of public resources for health programs, particularly in the context of the Universal Health Care Law. He also noted recent concerns about unutilized funds at PhilHealth, stressing the need for better money management.

“Parati nating pinapaalala sa PhilHealth, dapat po ang pondo ng PhilHealth ay gamitin po sa health. Ang dami pong pondo ng PhilHealth na hindi nagagamit para mapataas pa ang benepisyo at ma-expand pa ang mga programa,” Go added.

Go also noted his support for Senate Bill No. 2620, authored by Senator JV Ejercito, which proposes amendments to the UHC law to reduce PhilHealth premium contributions, aiming to alleviate the financial burden on the public.

"Sabi nga ni Senate Minority Leader, na kung maaari 3% pa po. Ang dami pong pondo ng PhilHealth, gamitin niyo naman po ito sa mga pasyente natin, mga kababayang naghihingalo po, hanggang ngayon hindi pa makalabas sa hospital," Go said.