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Official Publication of the Philippine Information Agency Bicol Regional Office, in cooperation with the RIAC-REDIRAS - RDC Bicol



Tuesday, February 4, 2014

Legazpi City, AGH partner to provide medical aid to indigents

LEGAZPI CITY, Feb. 4 (PIA) -- The city government here and the Ago General Hospital (AGH) have entered into a memorandum of agreement (MOA) to provide medical services to the indigents in this city.

Mayor Noel Rosal of this city and Dr. Angelita Ago, AGH president, recently signed the MOA for the implementation of the health program dubbed Hospital Assistance Program for Indigents (HAPI).

Rosal said that through the program, indigent patients can avail medical services by Ago General Hospital (AGH) following screening and evaluation of the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO) and one must be a Philhealth Para sa Masa card holder, a HAPI card holder and a Member of the Data Record (MDR) to become a beneficiary of this program.

 “One of the foremost agenda of the city goverment is to deliver good quality health services to the constituents, particularly to the poorest of the poor, to make sure that they are always in a good health condition,” Rosal said.

Based on the agreement, indigents can avail of services including confinement, regular nursing care, pharmaceutical services and laboratory services such as x-ray and ultrasound examination, clinical chemistry, clinical microscopy, serology, hematology and other ancillary procedures.
Not included in the services are dialysis, CT scan, use of respiration, chemotherapy and blood transfusion and other blood products.


Also present during the signing of the MOA was Philhealth representative Marcia Watalia V. Simson considering that the government health insurance corporation has to play a key role in the implementation of the health program
The signing was also witnessed by a representative of the City Health Office, City Legal Officer Marietta Belgica, members of the Sangguniang Panlunsod headed by Vice Mayor Vitorrio Roces, City Social Welfare and Development Officer Marlene Manaya and the medical consultant of AGH.

The health program is the subject of Sangguniang Panlunsod Resolution No. 0016-2014, co-authored by Councilors Melissa Abadeza as proponent and Lilibeth Munoz as co- proponent, adopted by the SP members on Jan. 21 and approved by Rosal on Jan. 27.

The CSWDO and City Health Office (CHO) will conduct seminars to all clients prior to the issuance of the HAPI access card.

The same offices will also conduct medical assessment of patients and make a referral letter signed by the authorized representative to be presented by the patients to the hospital before he or she is accepted as qualified beneficiary of this health program.

Generally, however, failure to secure and provide the referral letter, will render the patient a private patient and he or she is obliged to pay the regular bill of the hospital.

Based on the balance of bill payment, the city administration has no obligation to compensate and/or reimburse excess hospital bills and disallowed and non-included services rendered by the hospital.  The city government has also no obligation to pay for the services rendered by the hospital that are excluded in this agreement.

On the other hand, AGH will verify the referral letter issued by the CHO to make sure that the patients have accomplished the required HAPI card, Philhealth sa Masa Card and MDR before they become official beneficiaries of the health program.

The hospital will reserve hospital beds in its non-aircondition wards to be used by the qualified patients during the time of confinement, however, the hospital will also designate medical consultants, physicians, professional doctors, nurses and other medical staff members to deliver good quality health care services and treatment to all patients.

The hospital has an obligation to provide all the medicines prescribed by the attending physicians during the whole duration of the confinement of the patients.
The authorized doctors will also submit to the CHO the names of the qualified patients and the daily and quarterly census report.

In cases of emergencies and during Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, the doctors and medical consultants will attend and treat the indigent patients for evaluation, if medical care and admission is necessary.

The hospital will not charge any amount of payment to the qualified beneficiaries of the program for any medical services rendered as part of the “No balance of Bill Payment” policy wherein the qualified beneficiaries are not required to pay the excess in the bills beyond the amount compensable by the Philhealth as part of the no out-of-pocket payment by the admitted patients.

The hospital has an obligation to assume the excess of the hospital bills.  (MAL/EPSolis-LGU Legazpi City/PIA5/Albay)
- See more at: http://news.pia.gov.ph/index.php?article=771391484791#sthash.3a7dDwhj.dpuf

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