Ph missed chance to acquire 200 ICU beds in October

The Philippines is renegotiating to buy 200 intensive care unit (ICU) beds from an Austrian company after bungling an earlier chance to acquire the much-needed hospital fixture in October.

That missed opportunity again angered several medical doctors, who are scrambling to address the COVID-19 surge in overran hospitals.

The botched deal was also “enough to cause a shouting session” in a recent emergency Cabinet meeting where Health Secretary Francisco Duque III got a dressing down, according to a source.

Another government source confirmed the supposed offer in October, but clarified that the ICU beds were not a donation but supposedly through a “deliver-now-pay-later” scheme.

The sources did not say if President Duterte was present in the Cabinet meeting.

In a phone interview on Monday, Duque denied refusing any foreign aid or failing to act promptly, saying that would be such a “grave sin” especially in time of a health crisis.

He also denied getting reprimanded by fellow Cabinet members, who only learned about the Austrian offer when the Philippines was already in the midst of a second wave of infection.

In a statement, the Department of Health (DOH) said the beds were never offered as a donation, “hence this will [have to] undergo the normal procurement process.” INQ