PCSO cuts medical help for poor of Negros Occidental

BACOLOD CITY –– The medical assistance for indigent patients provided by the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) in Negros Occidental has been reduced from P211,200,000 to P133,056,000.

The reduction took effect last April 15, PCSO acting branch manager Jose Manuel Villagracia said.

The amount, he said, was cut to raise funds for indigent patients at the Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital (CLMMRH) in Bacolod City and other poorer areas in the Philippines.

The fund allotted for the CLMMRH was increased from P100,000 a day (22 days a month) to P245,000 a day retroactive to January.

This means CLMMRH would receive P64,680,000 or an increase of P38,280,000 this year from PCSO, he said.

The PCSO was releasing P800,000 a day in assistance in Negros Occidental up to April 14, when the amount was reduced to P504,000 a day, retroactive to January 1, Villagracia said.

That means the PCSO Negros Occidental branch would be releasing a reduced amount for the rest of the year, half of which would be used for help dialysis patients and the other half for those who need help for chemotherapy, diagnostics, implants and hospitalization, he said.

Villagracia said the PCSO Negros Occidental branch has been assisting about 1,900 dialysis patients.

Gregorio Gustilo Jr., president of the Negrense Dialysis Group, lamented the reduced assistance.

“In the past, it would take a month to get a PCSO guarantee letter for 10The medical assistance for indigent patients provided by the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) in Negros Occidental has been reduced from P211,200,000 to P133,056,000.

He said they hoped a law was passed increasing the PhilHealth-covered dialysis sessions from 90 days to 120 days to help meet their annual needs.