State-owned Development Bank of the Philippines revealed that it has granted P1.286-billion in funding support to a Batangas-based healthcare institution to enhance the delivery of basic and specialized health services in the Cavite-Laguna-Batangas-Rizal-Quezon region.
According to DBP president and chief executive officer Emmanuel Herbosa, the loan extended to Global East Medical Center Lipa Inc. under the Bank’s Strategic Healthcare Investments for Enhanced Lending and Development program will finance the construction of the first and only heart and brain center in Region IV-A.
“DBP’s credit support to GEAMC Lipa is in line with the Bank’s thrust of providing critical financial support to private healthcare providers for the improvement of the delivery of healthcare services to the Filipino people, especially those in the countryside,” Herbosa said.
DBP is the sixth largest bank in the country in terms of assets and provides credit support to four strategic sectors of the economy — infrastructure and logistics; micro, small and medium enterprises; environment; social services and community development.
GEAMC Lipa, on the other hand, is a private corporation owned and operated by practicing medical practitioners and business experts in Lipa City. The new facility is expected to bolster the capacity of the region to cater to the growing demand for medical services which currently stands at 219,235 inpatient bed days and 150,621 outpatient visits.
Herbosa said that under the agreement, P1.136-billion will be utilized to partially finance the construction of a seven-storey Level 2 hospital strategically located along the J.P. Laurel National Highway in Lipa City while the remaining P150-million will cover the acquisition of medical equipment and machineries.