Pampanga hospital to have first OFW-dedicated wing
A hospital in San Fernando, Pampanga, will have the first wing dedicated to the treatment and service of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who are heading abroad or in need of medical treatment.
In a statement Tuesday, ACTS-OFW party-list Representative Aniceto Bertiz III said Jose B. Lingad Memorial Regional Hospital will soon complete hospital wings dedicated for OFWs, especially those who will undergo pre-employment medical examination.
OFWs who require hemodialysis and chemotherapy and other serious diseases can also receive free treatment as allotted in the tertiary hospital's P578.44 million budget for 2018, Bertiz said.
The Jose B. Lingad Memorial Regional Hospital is a Level III tertiary, teaching and training hospital with 500 authorized beds.
Bertiz said similar wings will soon be set up in other regional public hospitals under the Department of Health (DOH) to help OFWs get proper medical care along with their families, especially those returning with illnesses.
"On September 7, the first of a series of agreements, will be signed to formalize the measures for the OFW wings of the DOH regional hospitals," Bertiz said.
Signees to this agreement include the DOH, ACTS-OFW party-list, the Department of Labor and Employment, and Overseas Workers Welfare Administration. —Rie Takumi/KBK, GMA News
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