By Dean Aubrey Caratiquet
President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. reaffirmed his commitment towards bolstering the country’s healthcare sector by continuing to sustain initiatives on improving access and lowering or removing barriers that hinder Filipinos from availing of this essential service.
This, as the President led the distribution of 124 patient transport vehicles (PTVs) to different local government units (LGUs) in Eastern Visayas at Ormoc City, Leyte this Monday. Each PTV is equipped with a stretcher, wheelchair, oxygen tank, medicine cabinet, and other medical implements to ensure safe transport of patients.
He opened his remarks by establishing health as a precious commodity, imperceptible in value yet touching every facet of life: “Dahil talaga bata pa ako, eh laging pinapaalala sa akin ng aking mga ninuno na kahit gaano ka kayaman, kahit gaano ka kasikat, ‘pag ikaw ay may sakit, hindi mo ma-enjoy lahat ng pinaghirapan mo buong buhay mo.”
President Marcos also noted the significant strides made by the government to address gaps in providing health services to the masses by putting up specialty centers, cancer centers, and dialysis centers, to name a few.
These are just some of the initiatives that were undertaken in response to the omnipresent and emerging challenges to the domestic healthcare system and in the diaspora, noting that these are tangible applications of the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Chief Executive, moreover, briefly tackled the zero balance billing and how it ties up with the rest of the measures that the Marcos Jr. administration has formulated to make healthcare more accessible, affordable, and attainable to the masses.
PBBM: Take care of ambulances, more to come by year-end
Meanwhile, President Marcos reminded the recipients of the PTVs—which include the municipalities of Abuyog, Jaro, Kananga, Matalom and Santa Fe in Leyte, as well as the towns of Tagapul-an, General MacArthur, Salcedo, San Policarpio, Lapinig, San Vicente, and Silvino Lobos in Samar—to care for these emergency vehicles.
“Basta alagaan lang ninyo—alagaan lang ninyo nang mabuti, tatagal ‘yan because itong brand na ito, very, very reliable ‘yan. At saka kagaya ng aking nasabi, kahit sinong mekaniko dito sa Pilipinas, kaya nilang ayusin ito at hindi mahirap makuha ang piyesa. Kaya’t alagaan niyo lang, tatagal nang mabuti ‘yan,” the President said in his speech.
This latest batch of PTVs that were distributed in Eastern Visayas brings the tally of cities and towns that received ambulances from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office’s (PCSO) Medical Transport Vehicle Donation Program (MTVDP) to 1,173, which equates to 75% of the 1,642 locales that are slated to receive emergency vehicles this year.
Marcos also announced that his administration will continue to disseminate ambulances to the remaining recipients before the year ends, with PCSO General Manager Mel Robles promising to begin the 2nd round of the MTVDP by year-end.
Moreover, the Chief Executive reiterated that this campaign of distributing new PTVs to various LGUs across the archipelago is crucial in paving the way for government health services to reach into the farthest communities and touch the lives of Filipinos, even in far-flung areas.
“This is our continuing effort to strengthen our healthcare system and to bring healthcare back as low to the—as low down to the smallest members of our society na alam mo eh palapitin lang natin ang healthcare sa taumbayan,” President Marcos concluded.
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