TACLOBAN CITY- An ordinance seeking for an increase of fees in all hospitals run by the provincial government of Leyte has been approved on third and final reading.
The provincial board approved the proposed ordinance mainly authored by board member Anlie Apostol during their regular session held DATE. Increase of fees to be collected by the management is necessary to ensure that these health facilities would not be penalized by the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (Phil health).
Fee increase ranges from 50% to as much as 200%, but Apostol said it is still a minimal fee if to compare with other hospitals like Eastern Visayas Regional Medical Center. The provincial government has 14 community and district hospitals under its supervision with the Leyte Provincial Hospital in Palo and the Ormoc District Hospital in Ormoc City as two of the biggest.
The proposed increase will take effect once the ordinance is posted in all the affected hospitals and in a newspaper of general circulation, Apostol said. She, however, stressed that only those who can afford to pay hospital bills will be affected by the ordinance as residents of the province who are considered indigents could avail free services. “Basically it is us, paying patients that will be affected by this ordinance and not the indigents. Indigent patients can still avail free services from hospital of the province. (ROEL T. AMAZONA)
