Day: October 14, 2024

LAOAG CITY – At least 12 indigent patients will be catered to daily once the Governor Roque B. Ablan Sr. Memorial Hospital opens its first dialysis center in November. The clinic will have six dialysis machines that will operate in two shifts from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., hospital officer-in-charge Dr. Arlene Ragasa said in a media interview Monday. ‘This is a big help to our constituents as we will not be charging anything from them. The cost (hemodialysis sessions) will be covered by PhilHealth (Philippine Health Insurance Corporation),’ she said. As of latest data, 20 patients have already made

BACOLOD CITY – The City of Victorias in Negros Occidental has introduced two major initiatives to ensure food security and sustainable agriculture in observance of the World Food Day on Oct. 16. These include the Kadiwa ng Pangulo, which was launched with a three-day trade fair over the weekend, and the ‘Project Victory’, both aimed at addressing food accessibility and empowering farmers and fisherfolk. Mayor Javier Miguel Benitez on Monday underscored the need to rethink food systems to ensure that every household has access to nutritious and affordable food’. ‘We need to recreate, redesign, and reimagine our food system to

Manila: The Department of Agriculture (DA) on Monday said it is coordinating with various government counterparts to secure more export agreements for Philippine agricultural products, including rice, durian, and mangoes. This came after President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. expressed hope of making Philippine tropical fruit available in New Zealand during his bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Christopher Luxon in Laos at the sidelines of the 44th and 45th ASEAN Summit and Related Summits. ‘Actually, iyong sinasabi sa bilateral [meeting], mayroong rice trade atsaka mga ibang produkto like (what has been discussed in the bilateral includes rice trade and other products

Manila: The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) has implemented an increase in the hemodialysis package from PHP4,000 to PHP6,350 per session. In a news release Monday, the state insurer said the increase took effect on Oct. 7 under PhilHealth Circular No. 2024-0023. Members and their qualified dependents with chronic kidney disease stage 5 (CKD5) can avail of the adjusted package rate from any of the accredited dialysis facilities near them. “We make good on our promise to take concrete steps to ensure that our benefit packages respond adequately to the needs of patients which is a core objective of the

Manila: Former Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) general manager and police colonel Royina Garma said a task force under the leadership of retired Col. Edilberto Leonardo at the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in Davao City (CIDG-11) played a pivotal role in the reward-based drug war of the Duterte administration. According to a news release on Monday, Garma revealed in her sworn affidavit submitted to the House quad committee that financial incentives between PHP20,000 and PHP 1 million motivated extrajudicial killings (EJKs) over arrests. Garma testified that the anti-drug campaign of the previous administration followed direct orders from then-president Rodrigo

Manila: The Philippines will push for the localization of disaster risk management while developing the country’s early warning system by learning from other Asia Pacific countries, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) said Monday. On the first day of the Asia Pacific Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (APMCDRR) at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) in Pasay City, Environment Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga said a single hazard is addressed in different ways because of the country’s varied geographies. The Philippines, being the most prone to natural hazards in the world, is facing more disaster threats as these