Go seeks to expand health care access

SEN. Bong Go sought to further improve and expand health care access in rural areas as the country opened its 165th Malasakit Center in Rosales, Pangasinan.

The senator said the 165 Malasakit Centers nationwide aim to boost access to health care and medical aid, especially for the poor.

Go, chairman of the Committee on Health and Demography, attended the opening of the Malasakit Center at the Conrado F. Estrella Regional Medical and Trauma Center in Rosales, Pangasinan on May 10.

This is the sixth Malasakit Center in Ilocos Region and part of a broader network of 92 centers throughout Luzon.

“We opened a new Malasakit Center here in Rosales to ensure that the Filipinos have access to efficient medical services that they need,” Go said in Filipino.

Go said he is committed to expanding health care access and reducing the financial burden of medical treatments, especially those in rural areas.

Go is the principal author and sponsor of Republic Act 11463, or the Malasakit Centers Act of 2019, which institutionalized the Malasakit Centers program.

The new Malasakit Center serves as a one-stop shop for medical-related financial assistance, integrating programs from the Department of Health, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Philippine Health Insurance Corp. and the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office.

This integration ensures that patients can access various types of assistance in a single location, “thereby streamlining the process and reducing the logistical burden on patients and their families,” Go said.