WHETHER you love her or hate her, it cannot be denied that President Bongbong Marcos’ mother, former First Lady Imelda Romualdez Marcos, left a legacy that for several decades now has been providing quality health care for Filipinos, especially those who cannot afford the expensive treatment available only in topnotch private medical centers.
We refer to the Philippine Heart Center, the Lung Center of the Philippines, and the Kidney and Heart Transplant Institute which have helped thousands of patients since Mrs. Marcos led the establishment of these health institutions. All situated in Quezon City, people from across the nation had to travel to Metro Manila to avail themselves of the services of these hospitals.
Following through this concept, the Bongbong Marcos campaign in 2022 promised the establishment of similar specialty hospitals in all regions of the country, seeking to disperse quality health care to the provinces in the Visayas and Mindanao, not to mention far-flung towns in Luzon.
Last week, President Marcos Jr. signed into law Republic Act (RA) No. 11959 or the Regional Specialty Centers Act which mandates the Department of Health to establish and institutionalize specialty healthcare centers in its hospitals in every region and in government-owned or -controlled corporations.
‘It is still too early to say if RA 11959 is indeed the fulfillment of a promise Mr. Marcos vowed when he was campaigning for President, but at least we can say that he tried to deliver…’
While not full-blown hospitals, the specialty centers to be formed and managed by the Department of Health will prioritize cancer care, cardiovascular care, lung care, renal care and kidney transplant, brain and spine care, trauma care and burn care.
The specialty centers shall also prioritize orthopedic care, physical rehabilitation medicine, infectious disease and tropical medicine, toxicology, mental health, geriatric care, neonatal care, dermatology, eye care, and ear, nose, and throat care.
The new law emphasized that the establishment of specialty centers shall adhere to the guidelines set by the DOH on planning and prioritizing health facilities based on the upgrading of hospitals, evidence of the health needs and demands, and service capability of hospitals and geographic or physical access.
Congress has a direct hand, too, in the establishment of these specialty centers that are envisioned to make a difference in providing health care for everybody.
The measure is a consolidation of Senate Bill No. 2212 and House Bill No. 7751, which was subjected to a bicameral conference committee meeting whose report was adopted by the Senate and the House of Representatives on May 31, 2023.
RA 11959 will be known as “An Act Establishing Specialty Centers in Department of Health Hospitals in Every Region and in Government-owned or -Controlled Corporation Specialty Hospitals and Appropriating Funds Therefor.”
It is still too early to say if RA 11959 is indeed the fulfillment of a promise Mr. Marcos vowed when he was campaigning for President, but at least we can say that he tried to deliver, along with officials and members of the House of Representatives and the Senate.
