Health officer asked how medical supplies are distributed

THE Cebu City Council asked yesterday Cebu City Health Officer Stella Ygonia to explain how her office disposed of its medicines and other supplies in 2011.
The councilors asked for an inventory and report of how these supplies and medicine were distributed.

Ygonia was asked to explain the distribution of P3 million worth of OB (obstetrical) kits following complaints from barangay officials on the lack of its supply in health centers.

“Barangay captains said they did not receive these OB kits,” Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young told Ygonia in an executive session yesterday.

Ygonia, who appeared before  the City Council,  was asked to explain her earlier statements  where she was quoted in media reports as saying  the city may face  a health crisis after the council cut her proposed budget from  P278.9 million to  P138.9 million

Of the P133-million budget she proposed for drugs and medicines, the council only approved P20 million, which was P1 million more than last year’s P19 million appropriation.

Councilor Margot Osmeña, the council’s budget committee chairperson, asked why Ygonia would insist on her need for a bigger budget when her office even had a P20- million surplus from their 2011 budget of P70 million.

Of her surplus funds, P3.8 million was from other medical supplies budget of P10.5 million while another P3.4 million is from the “Operation Tuli” funds of P6 million.

When asked how she would spend her proposed P133- million medicine budget, Ygonia said she needed a big budget especially for the city health offices maternal health care program.

“The fatal death and the neonatal death rate is already alarming.  We have to focus on our maternal health program.  We could be faced with a health crisis if this is not addressed,” she said.

Ygonia said  that she did not announce that the city may face a “health crisis”. She said she was  misquoted by a reporter from a local daily.

She clarified that what she said in her interview was that the city may be faced with a budget deficit.

“If we approved your proposed budget, does that mean that there will be no health crisis?” Osmeña asked.

“We will try to prevent a health crisis,” was Ygonia’s reply. /Chief of Reporters Doris C. Bongcac