OFW HOSPITAL TO BE FINISHED NEXT YEAR

By The Financial District
Nov 24, 2020
2 min read

Updated: Apr 30, 2021

Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III expressed optimism that a dedicated hospital for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) will be operational next year.

The construction of the hospital, which will be funded with a P200 million fund from the Philippine Amusement Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) was earlier by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Originally set for completion in April next year, the hospital can still be finished by December 2021, builders of the project assured.

Bello led the signing of the usufruct agreement between the Provincial Government of Pampanga and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) for the construction of the first-ever OFW hospital in the country in Baranggay Sindalan, San Fernando, Pampanga.

Signing for DOLE was Bello while for the Pampanga Provincial Government was Governor Lilia Pineda.

“I hope we can do our best to complete this wonderful project earlier. The sooner it is finished, the sooner we can help our OFWs,” Bello added.

Aside from the Pampanga Provincial Government and DOLE, also involved in the project are the Department of Health (DoH), Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Pagcor), and the Bloomberry Cultural Foundation.

Once completed, the hospital will provide free medical services to the country’s modern day heroes, Bello said.

“It will render free services when OFWs are securing medical certificates covering laboratory exams and other requirements for their overseas deployment,” Bello explained.

Earlier, it was agreed Pagcor will donate P200 million for the acquisition and installation of equipment and facilities for the hospital while Bloomberry Cultural Foundation will shoulder the construction cost.