Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez enjoined health sector stakeholders to work with the city government to address the gaps in healthcare delivery for the people of Bacolod.
“The target, the goal of the Health Summit is to ensure that health should be considered a human right, which means nobody will be denied access to medical service,” Benitez said in his message during the city’s first Health Summit held at L’ Fisher Hotel in Bacolod on Tuesday, June 11.
Representatives from the academe, barangays (villages), hospitals, Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth), the Department of Health, as well as personnel of the City Health Office attended the gathering.
“This is the first step in really realizing a better health system for the City of Bacolod,” the mayor added.
There was a series of pre-summit meetings to thresh out issues and concerns that would be tackled during the summit.
There were breakout sessions on various topics such as a stronger local health system, human resources for health, financial risk protection, integrated patient navigation to strengthen service delivery, improving PhilHeath reimbursements, scholarships and grants for human resources for health programs, and presentation of barangay health plans.
Benitez said he also wants the private hospitals to be part of the fulfillment of the health agenda of the city government.
He noted that all six private healthcare institutions in the city are part of the implementation of the Bacolod City Comprehensive Health Program (BacCHP).
Under the BacCHP, free medication and easy hospital access are available for indigents not required to pay a downpayment when admitted to these hospitals.
Councilor Claudio Jesus Puentevella, the chairperson of the City Council Committee of Health, said the city government wants to ensure that every Bacolodnon is provided all-inclusive, available, accessible, and quality health care.
“This summit is a unique opportunity to explore how we can integrate the vital services into our broader healthcare systems, particularly at the community level,” he added.
After the breakout sessions in the afternoon, the participants signed a commitment from stakeholders for the fulfillment of the health agenda for the people of Bacolod.*PNA