GENERAL SANTOS CITY (MindaNews / 26 March) – The Department of Health (DOH) has released a P4.8-million grant to Sarangani Province to assist the medical needs of poor residents in the area.
Dr. Arvin Alejandro, acting head of the Sarangani Provincial Health Office, said Wednesday such grant include the province‘s initial allocation this year under the DOH’s Medical Assistance Program.
He said it will be utilized to fund the hospitalization and other medical needs of patients that will be admitted in the province’s two municipal and two district hospitals – the Kiamba and Malungon district hospitals, and the Maitum and Maasim municipal hospitals.
The four hospitals mainly serve the area’s poor tribal residents who usually could not afford to access the services of private hospitals.
Alejandro said the Kiamba, Maitum and Maasim hospitals will receive P1 million each while the Malungon hospital will get the remaining P1.8 million.
“The funds will be used to pay for the excess medical expenses or items that were not covered by the PhilHealth benefits of our indigent patients,” he said.
The official said the program will mainly prioritize indigent patients but it would also consider those who are not classified as poor but in dire financial situation.
“We can charge from the fund the excess bills of patients who are really in need at the time of their admission or hospitalization,” he said.
Sarangani Gov. Steve Chiongbian Solon said the grant is a big help to underprivileged patients, especially those from remote areas in the province.
“We’re really grateful to the DOH for making the province as among the priority areas for its Programs. It already poured in hundreds of millions of pesos for the development of our hospitals and here comes another grant for us,” he said.
He was referring to the P50-million grant released by DOH in 2013 to fund the initial phase of the P200-million Sarangani provincial hospital in Alabel town.
The agency committed an additional P75 million for this year under its Health Facilities Enhancement Program to sustain the project.
In the last two years, the DOH has already released around P112 million for the ongoing upgrading of the district hospitals in Kiamba, Glan and Malungon towns.
The initiative mainly focuses on the upgrading of the three infirmary facilities to Level 1 primary hospitals.
