STA. RITA, Pampanga – A total of 2,734 Kapampangans from this town expressed their gratitude to Governor Lilia “Nanay” G. Pineda and to the administration of President Benigno Aquino III for renewing their PhilHealth memberships under the Alaga Ka Program yesterday.
It was learned, said town is the first stop in the series of Member Data Records (MDRs) distribution scheduled for the start of 2016 throughout the province.
According to Remedios Pascual, a resident of Barangay San Jose, the renewal of their PhilHealth premium is like receiving a priceless gift ensuring the health of their whole family, especially since she is about to give birth to their second child.
“This gives me and my husband peace of mind. Even though we currently facing financial difficulties, this ensures we can get quality health services the moment we need it,” he added.
Governor Pineda also urged the PhilHealth beneficiaries in this town to maximize the use of their health insurance at the local government health facilities such as barangay health center and rural health units or the eleven government hospitals throughout the province.
“Aside from the free examination and checkup ensured by your PhilHealth membership, you are also entitled to free take home medicines,” the governor stressed.
The PhilHealth beneficiaries were identified by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) under its program, National Housing Targeting System for Poverty Reduction (NHTS-PR) while the annual premiums were paid for by the Department of Health (DOH) under its Universal Health Care Program.
Based on the PhilHealth official list, Kapampangan recipients under the Alaga Ka program sum up to 136,296 for 2016.
“The national government through the leadership of President Aquino renewed the health insurance of more than 130,000 Kapampangans ensuring their access to needed health services. For that, we are truly grateful,” Pineda said.
By Angelique DC. Tuazon-Eliseo
