TARLAC CITY – Gov. Victor “Vic” Yap vowed to improve further the health care service in the province, aiming to create a total 700 hospital beds by the end of 2012.
Yap disclosed that the four government hospitals, including the Tarlac General Hospital (TGP), have a combined capacity of 600 beds.
“There were less than 300 beds during my first term as governor. Now there are 600 and we want have 700 before my second term ends,” said Yap, son of the late former Tarlac governor and congressman Jose Yap.
Yap said he had “actively sought” the assistance of the 17 town mayors and one city mayor in delivering reliable health care service benefitting the some 1.3 million residents.
“Now, the 18 mayors are realizing the need to allot a big portion of their respective budget for health care,” Yap said.
Asked how much the mayors should allot for health, Yap said “about 50 percent.”
Yap stressed the need for people both rich and poor to enroll with the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth).
“This is one way of stretching our yearly budget,” he added.
