Healthcare receives priority attention; is there a need to transfer PhilHealth to the Office of the President?

According to a reputable global healthcare insurance provider, “While the overall quality of the Philippines’ state-subsidized public healthcare is good, healthcare in rural areas is of significantly lower quality than at hospitals in large cities. Private healthcare in the Philippines provides more consistent care, and facilities tend to be better equipped than public ones.”

In his first State of the Nation Address (SONA) a year ago, President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. addressed the twin imperatives of healthcare service quality as well as access. He vowed affordable medicines for ordinary people. He also promised that his administration will build easy-to-reach hospitals and health centers for those living in far-flung areas.

He reaffirmed that he is determined to deliver on these promises as he led the briefing and site inspection of the first-ever Clark Multi-Specialty Medical Center (CMSMC) in Clark Freeport Zone, Pampanga, last Monday, July 17. He emphasized that this project reflected his administration’s push toward achieving universal healthcare. This facility brings state-of-the-art health care facilities to the people in Central Luzon covering the provinces of Bulacan, Pampanga, Tarlac, Zambales, Bataan, Nueva Ecija and Aurora.

Providing financial support to this project are: the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR); the Department of Health (DOH); the local government units; and the Bloomberry Cultural Foundation.

As envisioned, the project will offer specialized care for heart, kidney, lung and cancer patients as well as for children. It will be recalled that it was then First Lady and Metro Manila Governor Imelda Romualdez Marcos who spearheaded the establishment of the Philippine Heart Center, the Lung Center of the Philippines, the National Kidney and Transplant Institute, and the Philippine Children’s Medical Center – all of which are located in Quezon City.

The public could reasonably expect that similar facilities will be put up in other regions of the country within the next five years.

This auspicious development was preceded by a news report highlighting an opinion rendered by the Department of Justice (DOJ) that based on the Administrative Code of the Philippines, “there is no legal issue on the possible transfer of PhilHealth to the OP as it is a legitimate exercise of the President’s power of control over the executive department, bureaus, and offices.” It was reported previously that a Department of Health (DOH) Technical Working Group (TWG) has been tasked with evaluating the feasibility of such a transfer.
The key consideration should be: What organizational set-up would enable PhilHealth to perform its mandate effectively as a leading agency in the implementation of universal health care?

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