Casiño wants full funding for public hospitals instead of privatization of public health services

By BAYAN MUNA (PR)

QUEZON CITY — With the Department of Budget and Management (DBM)’s recent release of P978.4M as part of the modernization program of the Philippine Orthopedic Center (POC), Makabayan senatorial candidate Teddy Casiño called for government’s full funding of public hospitals instead of privatization of public health services.

“Through the so-called “modernization” and corpora-tization, price of health services will further increase at the expense of the poor patients, like what we are now experiencing with Government Owned and Controlled Corporation (GOCC) hospitals. The “modernized” POC under the private entity will charge patients at “market rates”, walang ipinag-iba sa private hospitals. Kahit pa sabihing “subsidized” under PhilHealth ang indigents, paano kakayanin ng kasalukuyang mahigit 500 indigent patients ng POC kung magmamahal ang serbisyo?” Casiño said.

“Instead of spending taxpayers money to push for privatization and to benefit private companies in the guise of modernization, government should directly fund and develop our hospitals to benefit poor patients. The almost P1 billion fund is more than double the P413.65M allotment for POC for 2013 and other government hospitals whose needs have long been ignored by the national government,” said Casiño. “Ang laki ng ibubuhos na pera sa facilities ng POC para maging kaakit-akit sa investors pero yung mga indigents hindi mabigyan ng 100% discount.”

Casiño proposed that funding for the government hospitals be doubled. For 2013, the Aquino administration only allotted P9.825 billion for the 66 Department of Health (DOH)-retained hospitals. This is only half of the P19.234 billion requested by the hospitals. 

“Our public hospitals are in dire need of additional funds. Poor Filipino patients are already burdened by the increasing costs of health services in public hospitals. POC in particular hiked its rates for x-ray and laboratory procedures of up to 100-200% in 2011. The health workers could barely get the mandated benefits due them. That’s why, for the interest of the ordinary Filipinos, the government should instead double the fund for public hospitals rather than privatizing public health services,” said Casiño.

During the congressional hearing on the DOH budget, Casiño recommended that the P12.6B allotment for PhilHealth subsidy to the poorest 5.3 million households be transferred instead as additional allotment to the public hospitals.

The lawmaker deemed that direct funding in public hospitals will benefit all indigent patients including those identified as “poorest of the poor” by the government.

This realignment, Casiño pointed out, may not adversely affect Philhealth operations, which according to DOH, has P101.03B in reserve fund, and will get additional revenues through the 100% increase in premium by 2013. # nordis.net