Senator Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go assured the public that he will continue to push for better access to quality healthcare, particularly in rural areas while improving services to provide more livelihood to struggling and marginalized sectors.
The senator — who also chairs the Senate Committee of Health and Demography — stressed that he remains steadfast in promoting a stronger healthcare system in the country as his team provided assistance to hundreds of vulnerable residents in Orani, Bataan recently.
The senator’s team also provided aid to residents of San Fernando City in La Union.
Go’s team distributed 333 residents at Orani multipurpose gymnasium where they gave away masks and snacks. They also provided cellular phones, shoes and balls for basketball to select individuals.
Over at San Fernando, the senator’s staff also provided the same.
As part of his commitment to bring public healthcare closer to the Filipino people, Go principally authored and sponsored Republic Act No. 11463, otherwise known as the Malasakit Centers Act of 2019.
The law mandates all Department of Health-run hospitals and the Philippine General Hospital in Manila City to establish their own Malasakit Centers that will help poor and indigent patients reduce their hospital bills to the lowest amount possible.
There are currently 152 Malasakit Centers nationwide — one-stop shops which house relevant government agencies that offer medical assistance programs, such as the DoH, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Philippine Health Insurance Corporation and Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office.