PGH to suffer P450-M budget slash in 2024
By Andreah David
Despite a P508 million increase in the University of the Philippines’ (UP) 2024 budget, the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) is set to bear the brunt of receiving a P450M cut in the university’s overall financial funds for the current year.
With a slip from P5.41B in 2023 to P4.96B this year, the cut in PGH, the national referring center, becomes the biggest among the university’s programs and constituent units.
After President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. inked the 2024 General Appropriations Act (GAA) last Dec. 20, various concerns have arisen regarding the slash for utilities and supplies of medical facilities that can result in insufficient healthcare quality.
“Since may budget cut nga, hindi lahat ng nangangailangan ng tulong-medikal ay makakakuha at makakaabot nito. Additionally, the reduction can contribute sa pagtaas ng mga diseases and health issues due to lack of access [to] timely and appropriate care,” Carl De Vera, a BA Political Science freshman said.
According to De Vera, higher morbidity and mortality rates can be expected if the government continually fails to improve the availability of essential treatments and services, especially for marginalized sectors.
Notably, PGH’s fund for Medical Assistance for Indigent Patients (MAIP) program has been slashed by more than P194M.
Established by an administrative order from the Department of Health in 2017, MAIP seeks to allocate a budget to all government health facilities, including those overseen by state universities and colleges such as UP, to support a fund accessible to indigent patients.
Meanwhile, amid the reduction in funding for hospital services, PGH received P2.08B allocated for the construction of the Pediatric and Adult Specialty Center, Training Center, and dormitory for healthcare workers.
Furthermore, the renovation of the PGH’s fire suppression and detection system was given P250M following the fire that broke out in the hospital in 2021.
However, the budget increase did not come without its setbacks, as the total budget of P24.8B given to the UP System still falls significantly short of the originally requested P40.8B.
In addition, funding for most of UP’s regular programs had been reduced. The university budget for its Higher Education Program, allotted for scholarships, colleges and institutes, and faculty and staff salaries, is slated to face a significant cut of P943M.
While the budget for scholarships was slashed from P851M to P448M, this was counterpoised with a hike for financial subsidies, with a reversal from P1.86B to P2.26B.
Given the rise of deregularization and contractualization in PGH, this budget cut in the hospital sets a dangerous predicament for what awaits in the country’s healthcare under Marcos’ misaligned priorities.
