LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – Rep. Ronald M. Cosalan said office is making available some P25 million this year to cater to the health needs of bonafide residents from the different parts of the province seeking medical assistance from his office.
The three-term lawmaker said of the total amount, P10 million each was given to the Benguet General Hospital (BeGH) and the Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center (BGHMC) while P5 million was earmarked to the Philippine Heart Center.
“Funds last year for the hospitals were not sufficient to serve the increasing number of people that sought our assistance that is why we have to make do with what was made available for this year,” Cosalan stressed.
He revealed those undergoing hemodialysis treatment are the topnotchers in seeking medical assistance from his office that is why he is now trying to control the grant of assistance so that the funds that he allocated for medical assistance could be stretched up to the end of the year.
Cosalan appealed for understanding from the patients and their family members to initially make do with the assistance from his office because of the enormous number of chronic kidney patients regularly seeking assistance from his office, saying that everyone must learn to sacrifice and help themselves while undergoing medical treatment in the different hospitals.
According to him, he no longer placed funds for medical assistance in the National Kidney Training Institute (NKTI) for this year because the funds that he placed in the hospital during the previous years were not exhausted because of the limited number of Benguet residents seeking treatment with the NKTI.
Cosalan explained his office has to maintain the funds for medical assistance with the Philippine Heart Center because although there are a few residents from Benguet who are being given treatment in the Manila-based hospital, their accumulated hospital bills are expensive because of the numerous procedures involved in treating heart ailments.
He added health is a major asset of people to become productive citizens so he advises residents to always seek early medical consultations so that they could be afforded early treatment to prevent their illnesses from getting worse.
From the previous ten sessions that he had been giving to patients seeking medical assistance for dialysis treatment, he claimed that he had reduced the assistance he is giving to two to five sessions depending on the situation of the patient so that more people seeking assistance could be granted help and for the funds to be able to extend up to the end of the year.
Cosalan noted the funds that he had been allocating for medical assistance the previous years had been already exhausted by October leaving his office helpless in looking for alternative sources of funds to be able to meet the needs of increasing number of patients visiting his office and requesting for financial assistance.
By HENT
