SEN. Bong Go called for the swift and full implementation of the Universal Health Care (UHC) Law, citing growing anxiety among Filipinos regarding health care accessibility.
A recent survey said 70 percent of adult Filipinos cited staying healthy and avoiding illness as their top concern for the fourth quarter of 2024. This, Go said, underscores a growing trend of avoiding hospitalization among citizens due to financial fears.
“Filipinos should no longer be afraid of going to the hospital because of the cost of medical care. The goal of the Universal Health Care Law is to make health services accessible to all,” the senator said in Filipino.
“The problem is, when someone in the family gets sick, sometimes you must take out a mortgage or a loan. This situation must change. Health is not a privilege but a right of every Filipino,” Go added.
Go said Malasakit Centers were instrumental in reducing out-of-pocket medical expenses of poor Filipinos.
The senator is the principal author and sponsor of the Republic Act 11463, or the Malasakit Centers Act of 2019, which institutionalized the Malasakit Centers program.
Currently, 166 Malasakit Centers are operational nationwide.
These one-stop shops bring together representatives from the Department of Social Welfare and Development, Department of Health, Philippine Health Insurance Corp., and Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office to help impoverished patients pay their medical bills.
The Health Department reported that the Malasakit Center program has aided over 15 million Filipinos to date.
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