DOH to give free hypertension, diabetes maintenance medicines in 2016

The Department of Health (DOH) has some good news for hypertension and diabetes patients: the department will be providing free maintenance medicines starting January 2016.

A GMA News report said that the one kind of diabetes medicine and the three kinds of hypertension medicine will be provided at DOH rural health units.

However, nefore patients can get free medicines, they need to sign up for the DOH Hypertensive and Diabetes Club and consult a physician to know the medicines and dosages needed.

DOH spokesperson Dr. Lyndon Lee Suy said that both hypertension and diabetes are manageable with maintenance medicines, but not everyone can afford them.,

According to the 2013 National Nutrition Survey of the Food and Nutrition Research Institute, about three million Filipinos are diabetic and around 20 million have the hypertension.

The same survey also discovered that the top causes of deaths in the noncommunicable diseases category were heart diseases, cancer, diabetes, and lung problems. — Trisha Macas/DVM/LBG, GMA News