Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 23) — A lawmaker urged the Senate on Sunday to pass several hospital expansion bills despite a recent clash between Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon and Senator Bong Go on the issue of financing for hospital upgrades.
House Majority Leader and Leyte 1st District Rep. Martin G. Romualdez said the Senate should realize the need “to improve the basic healthcare services in the countryside.”
“These bills are seeking to upgrade the services, facilities, professional healthcare, and increase the number of medical personnel of two hospitals to serve the people,” he was quoted as saying in a statement.
“We are confident that the Senate is one with our goal to pass these bills into law to help the struggling hospitals keep up with the increasing number of patients, especially now with COVID pandemic,” Romualdez added.
Romualdez and his wife, Tingog partylist Rep. Yedda Marie K. Romualdez, filed a bill seeking to boost bed capacities of the Eastern Visayas Regional Medical Center in Tacloban City and the Schistosomiasis Hospital in Palo, Leyte, which Go sponsored.
Aside from increasing capacities, they also proposed to convert the Schistosomiasis Hospital into the Governor Benjamin T. Romualdez General Hospital. They also seek to rename Eastern Visayas Regional Medical Center into Eastern Visayas Medical Center.
In the statement, Romualdez lauded Go’s support to pursue hospital expansion bills.
However, Drilon grilled Go, chairperson of the Senate health committee, during a session on Thursday on the local bills being pushed by the latter.
Drilon raised concerns about some bills proposing the renationalization and expansion of public hospitals. He argued the national government would be further burdened as it would cough up additional funding for the implementation of the bills.
“I am concerned about the finances of this government. Wala na ngang pera, wala na ngang collection (The government does not have money, enough collection),” Drilon said at the session.
“Ang ayaw ko lang po ay (What I dislike is) we will again burden the national government, which is already hard up on funds. With funding requirements that can otherwise be absorbed by the local government,” he added.
