TUGUEGARAO CITY, Philippines- Cagayan Governor Manuel Mamba is poised to close four town community hospitals in the province due to non-passage of this year’s proposed budget.
A source from Department of Health (DOH) Cagayan Valley regional unit confirmed Mamba had wrote to them informing them of the impending closure of the DOH-licensed hospitals.
Mamba also wrote a letter Vice Governor Melvin “Boy” Vargas Jr, a copy of which was obtained by The Northern Forum, informing the latter of the closure of the four hospitals namely: Gattaran Emergency Hospital, Alcala Municipal Hospital, Santa Ana Community Hospital and Aparri Medicare Hospital.
(READ: Barcena: Cagayan hospitals should be prioritized)
Mamba said the provincial government is closing the said hospitals to maintain the Level 1 Hospitals as they would not have enough fund to pay the contractual employees of the district hospitals under the re-enacted budget. The term of the contractual employees of the provincial government ended on June 30.
“The provincial government is closing four (4) of its infirmaries as a result of the transfer of permanent employees of the said infirmaries to augment the manpower services of Level 1 District Hospitals,” Mamba told Vargas in his letter.
He added the closure of hospitals is “necessary to faithfully comply with the DOH manpower requirements in light with budgetary constraints.”
Earlier, the council, however, denied that the “pending” closure of the community hospitals is caused by the non-passage of the 2017 Proposed Executive Budget of Mamba. Northernforum.net
