The provincial government is planning to privatize some of its facilities and turn the Negros Oriental Provincial Hospital into an economic enterprise.
Sangguniang Panlalawigan First District Board Member Liland Estacion, chair of the SP Committee on Ways and Means, said yesterday there is a plan to generate income from the rentals of facilities owned by the provincial government, like the sports, convention, hotel, and the aqua center, that houses the Olympic-sized swimming pool.
Estacion said her committee is studying the passage of an ordinance on the matter.
But she stressed that the plan to transform the NOPH to an economic enterprise must be studied carefully and will take time, as consultations with local government units and residents are needed to ensure that quality healthcare services will not be sacrificed.
Estacion said indigent patients must not be denied medical services.
Several SP members said that while they are open to the possibility of turning the hospital into an economic enterprise, it must be ensured that NOPH will remain accessible to poor patients.*RA
back to top |