SENATOR Christopher “Bong” Go recently conducted a personal inspection of the Super Health Center in Himamaylan City, Negros Occidental on Saturday, March 23. This initiative is part of his efforts to help bring essential medical services closer to Filipinos, especially those residing in grassroots areas.
Go, head of the Senate Committee on Health and Demography, emphasized the critical role Super Health Centers play in ensuring that public health services are within reach of every Filipino, regardless of their geographic location.
Advocated by Go, Super Health Centers are designed to provide a wide range of medical services, including outpatient care, laboratory services, and pharmacy services, all under one roof. Super Health Centers shall focus on primary care, medical consultations, and early disease detection especially in grassroots communities.
It aims to reduce the need for patients to travel great distances to access healthcare, thereby addressing one of the significant barriers to healthcare access in rural and remote regions. In effect, these can also help decongest hospitals according to Go.
“Sa tulong po ng mga kasamahan natin sa Kongreso, DOH led by Sec. Ted Herbosa, at mga lokal na gobyerno, magkakaroon po ng 31 na Super Health Center dito sa probinsya ng Negros Occidental… Mahigit 700 na Super Health Center ang napondohan sa buong Pilipinas sa loob ng tatlong taon,” added Go.
He then lauded the local government, including Governor Eugenio “Bong” Lacson, Vice Governor Jeffrey Ferrer, Congressman Emilio Bernardino Yulo, and Mayor Rogelio Raymund Tongson, among others, for their efforts to make health services more accessible to their constituents.
“Isa sa rason kung bakit naabot natin ang pag unlad sa syudad natin dahil ito sa kanya. Dahil sa kanya magkakaroon na tayo ng Super Health Center. Nakakatulong ‘yan sa atin mga health services… ang iba pang mga proyekto dito sa ating siyudad ay dahil rin ‘yan sa kanya. Ladies and gentlemen, ang ating pinasasalamatan, kaming mga Himamaylanons, Senator Bong Go,” expressed Mayor Tongson in his introduction to the senator.
Go also reiterated his commitment that no Filipino should be left behind, especially in accessing medical care. That is why he initiated the Malasakit Centers program to help underprivileged patients access medical assistance programs from the government.
So far, more than ten million Filipinos have benefitted from the program with 161 Malasakit Centers established nationwide including the one at Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital (CLMMRH) in Bacolod City.
Principally sponsored and authored by Go, Republic Act No. 11463 aims to make medical assistance programs more accessible by bringing together all concerned agencies under one roof, including the Department of Social Welfare and Development, the Department of Health, the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, and the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office.
Go also principally sponsored and is one of the authors of Republic Act No. 11959, also known as the Regional Specialty Centers Act. The law mandates the establishment of regional specialty centers within existing DOH regional hospitals to bring specialized medical services to all regions. CLMMRH plans to enhance its specialty centers focusing on cardiovascular care, renal and transplant centers, brain and spine care, orthopedic care, neonatal care, burn care, trauma care, toxicology care, cancer care, geriatric care, infectious disease, and tropical medicine.
Meanwhile, as Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Finance, Go supported the construction of several multipurpose buildings and a bridge in the city.
“Sa mga taga-Negros, maraming salamat sa inyong tiwala at suporta sa amin ni former president Duterte. Kami po ang dapat magpasalamat sa inyo dahil binigyan n’yo kami ng pagkakataon na makaserbisyo sa inyo. Kami po’y probinsyano po na taga-Mindanao, ako Batangueño po ako na Bisaya pero binigyan nyo kami ng pagkakataon na makapagserbisyo sa inyo. Hinding-hindi ko po sasayangin ito. Magseserbisyo po ako sa abot ng aking makakaya,” Go mentioned.
On the same day, Go also assisted displaced workers in the city. Furthermore, Go was in Ilog town, where he participated in the Kisi-Kisi Festival and assisted more displaced workers.
The following day, Go made stops in Victorias City and Bacolod City to inspect the Super Health Centers there and provide support to additional displaced workers. His visit also included participating in the festivities of the PBA All Star weekend held in Bacolod City.
