P55-M cauldron could have been spent for live-saving treatment, equipment — health coalition

MANILA – Groups under the Coalition of People’s Right to Health (CPRH) took to the streets as they once again demanded higher allocation for public health care system.

On Nov. 27, the groups marched from España to Chino Roces (formerly Mendiola) bridge with their banner “Emergency: Public Health in Crisis, People’s Day of Protest.” They lamented that the “public health care system is indeed in critical condition and the government must immediately do something about it.”

The groups said the P55 million ($982,323) spent for a cauldron in the SEA Games could have been used for life-saving purposes such as the following:
– Full-course of anti-TB medicines for 12,500 patients (minimum P4,000 per full course for 6-9 months)
– 1 session of hemodialysis for 14,285 patients (minimum of P3,500 per session)
– CT Scan for 6,250 patients (P8,000 per scan)
– 3 days’ rental of mechanical ventilator/respirator for 20,833 patients (P2,400 rental fee per machine for 3 days), or
– 161 units of mechanical ventilators/respirators (P309,400 per unit of AeonMed brand)
– 50 additional Barangay Health Stations with supplies (estimated at P1-million per BHS)

The CPRH and its member organizations vowed to hold more protests as the approval of the 2020 General Appropriations Act approaches. The groups said they “will continue to hound the gates of Malacañang to push the government into taking a stand for the realization of the people’s right to health and address the crisis in the public health care system.”

Text by Anne Marxze D. Umil
Photos courtesy of Coalition of People’s Right to Health Facebook page.

(https://www.bulatlat.com)

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