Bill creating 'regional specialty hospitals' gets Senate’s final nod

The Senate on Monday unanimously approved the bill seeking to establish specialty hospitals in every region—a priority measure of the Marcos administration.

Under Senate Bill No. 2212, the DOH shall establish at least one specialty center in every region  based on the top burden of disease and special needs in the area, with particular focus on establishing heart, lung, and kidney centers that shall replicate the capabilities of the national specialty centers in Metro Manila.

The DOH is also tasked to ensure that specialty centers in DOH hospitals have expert personnel and medical specialists provided with necessary training and appropriate specialist equipment.

It is also required to include capital outlay investment for designated specialty centers through the Health Facilities Enhancement Program.

SB 2212 also enumerates the responsibilities of the specialty centers and shall authorize them to contract the services of individuals deemed as medical specialists or experts to provide specialty training and technical assistance to specialty centers.

Earlier, Senator Bong Go, sponsor of the bill, said an initial budget of P8.6 billion had already been included in the 2023 General Appropriations Act and this bill seeks to sustain its funding. —VAL, GMA Integrated News