President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Friday led the inauguration of the Veterans Access to Lifetime Optimized Healthcare (VALOR) Clinic in Lipa City, Batangas, as part of the government’s ongoing initiative to provide Filipino veterans with improved access to quality healthcare services.

Marcos, joined by Department of National Defense (DND) Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr., led the unveiling of the marker for the VALOR Clinic during the ceremony.

The clinic’s inauguration supports Marcos’ directive to enhance healthcare services for Filipino war veterans, AFP retirees, and their dependents.

Designed to help ease patient congestion at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center (VMMC) in Quezon City, the VALOR Clinic will provide outpatient services such as consultations, diagnostic tests, and pharmaceutical care.

Currently undergoing phased renovation, the facility will include a patient waiting area, consultation rooms, a pharmacy, a blood extraction area, a staff pantry, support spaces, and a teleconsultation unit.

The newly opened clinic is part of the broader VALOR program, which aims to expand healthcare access by establishing medical facilities within military treatment centers nationwide.

Meanwhile, the VALOR Network aims to improve patient outcomes and expand access to specialized services by seamlessly integrating care across various medical levels.

To ensure efficient, patient-centered service, trained triage personnel will conduct initial assessments, recording vital signs, identifying chief complaints, and prioritizing cases based on urgency and clinical needs. This process ensures patients are directed to the appropriate care pathway.

Following triage, patients are guided to designated outpatient consultation rooms for further clinical evaluation.

For cases requiring subspecialty expertise beyond the clinic’s on-site capacity, patients are referred to a dedicated teleconsultation facility.

This unit enables real-time remote case conferencing with off-site specialists, ensuring comprehensive care and continuous support for complex medical conditions.

More VALOR clinics

The Fernando Air Base in Lipa City is one of four pilot sites under Phase 1 of the VALOR Clinic project. Other initial locations include the Northern Luzon Command in Tarlac, Fort Bonifacio General Hospital in Taguig City, the Southern Luzon Command in Quezon, and Camp Riego De Dios in Cavite City.

Each facility will be manned by localized medical teams and equipped with telehealth connections to the Veterans Memorial Medical Center (VMMC), access to outsourced diagnostic services, and a centralized system for dispensing maintenance medications.

The clinics will also prioritize preventive healthcare, chronic disease management, health research, and services tailored to the civilian defense community.

Under Phase 2, the program will expand to additional sites, including the Western Command in Palawan, Eastern Mindanao Command in Davao City, Western Mindanao Command in Zamboanga City, Brigadier General Benito Ebuen Air Base Hospital in Mactan, and the Government Arsenal Medical Facility in Bataan.

In its final phase, the program will extend to additional sites, including Kuta Major Cesar L. Sang-an Hospital in Zamboanga del Sur, Camp Peralta Station Hospital in Capiz, Camp Evangelista Station Hospital in Cagayan de Oro, Camp Melchor F. Dela Cruz Station Hospital in Isabela, Camp Siongco Station Hospital in Maguindanao, and the 8th Infantry Division Hospital at Camp General Vicente Lukban in Samar.