152nd Malasakit Center opened in Quezon

MANILA, Philippines — Senators Bong Go and Robinhood Padilla visited Quezon province on Thursday to attend the opening of the 152nd Malasakit Center and groundbreaking ceremony of a seven-story building at the Maria L. Eleazar General Hospital in Tagkawayan town.

The new Malasakit Center is the second in the province, aside from the one at the Quezon Medical Center in Lucena, and the 12th in Calabarzon.

Go initiated the Malasakit Center program in 2018 to give indigent patients convenient access to medical assistance offered by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Department of Health (DOH), Philippine Health Insurance Corp. and Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office.

The program was institutionalized under Republic Act 11463 or the Malasakit Centers Act, which Go principally authored and sponsored.

The DOH said the Malasakit Center program has assisted more than seven million Filipinos nationwide.

After the launch of the center, Go led the distribution of meals, food packs, vitamins, shirts and face masks to 92 healthcare workers and 16 patients. The patients and 58 hospital employees also received financial assistance from the DSWD.

Go also distributed bicycles, cellular phones, shoes, watches and balls for basketball and volleyball to select individuals.