BACOLOD City – Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri pledged an additional P400 million to complete the Bacolod City General Hospital (BCGH).
The senator was the guest of honor during the groundbreaking for the multipurpose building of the BCGH on Sept. 9 in Barangay Vista Alegre.
He previously pledged P200 million.
The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) is the implementing agency.
The BCGH will rise on a four-hectare lot donated by the Gensoli family to the city government.
“I am glad to work with the local government of Bacolod, Cong. Greg Gasataya and Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez in bringing this long-awaited project to fruition,” Zubiri said.
He added, “If this pandemic has taught us anything, it is that we need more hospitals across the country, especially in highly populated urban areas like Bacolod City.”
He lamented that Negros Occidental only has one tertiary government hospital – the 400-bed capacity Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital based here.
Zubiri said BCGH will accomplish two things – decongest existing hospitals in the city and ensure that the people of Bacolod have access to quality and affordable healthcare.
“With over half a million people in Bacolod City alone, it is clear that our public health facilities are simply not enough,” the senator said.
A Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) was signed between the Department of Health (DOH) – Western Visayas represented by Regional Director Adriano Suba-an and the city of Bacolod represented by Mayor Benitez.
According to the DPWH, the hospital will be completed by June 2023./PN
