PGH gets additional P1.54-B budget for 2021 —Angara

The Philippine General Hospital (PGH) was given an additional P1.54 billion budget under the P4.5-trillion General Appropriations Act of 2021, Senator Sonny Angara said Saturday.

Angara said that this was to ensure that its patients will be able to avail of free medical services for 2021 amid the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.

“[PGH] needs a significant amount of financial support to cater to all those who are sick or need specialized care but could not afford to go to a private hospital,” Angara said in a statement.

On its website, the PGH said it serves more than 500,000 patients annually, 98 percent of which are indigent.

Meanwhile, the senator said the additional budget will also allow PGH to accommodate more patients who need to undergo heart surgery.

“Heart diseases continue to be one of the leading causes of death among Filipinos and as such there are more people who need heart surgery,” Angara said.

“We are constantly looking for ways to capacitate our government hospitals to accommodate more patients with heart ailments and save lives,” he added.

According to the statement, the PGH is able to conduct heart surgery on around 50 patients annually. This may, however, increase to 200 patients for 2021 with the additional budget.

The senator said PGH would now be able to establish a multi-specialty facility that will cater to patients who require specialists in renal care, psychology, dermatology, neuroscience, and advance laboratory services.

He added that the PGH would also be able to start the construction of its microbial bank.

EAMC additional budget

According to Angara, the East Avenue Medical Center (EAMC) also received an additional budget for 2021.

The additional budget will allow the EAMC to construct its radiation center for cancer patients, the senator said.

Meanwhile, around P37 million was given to the hospital for an establishment of a molecular diagnostic laboratory to allow the EAMC to conduct RT-PCR tests for COVID-19.

The EAMC also received P124 million for the purchase of laboratory network commodities.

Angara said that 20 dialysis machines were also given to the hospital upon request to augment the existing 15 machines it is currently using.

“All of these interventions are consistent with one of the thrusts of the 2021 GAA, which is to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic,” Angara said.

“We must strengthen our country’s health system so that it will be able to handle the current and future health crises better,” he added. -MDM, GMA News