PH gets $600-M US healthcare grant

MANILA, Philippines — The national government has obtained up to $600 million in grant assistance from the United States to fund a health project focused on disease surveillance, outbreak detection and response.

The Department of Finance (DOF) said on Monday that the grant, equivalent to around P36.95 billion, would support the Strategic Objective Agreement (SOAG) for Integrated and Sustainable Health Systems of the Department of Health (DOH).

Article continues after this advertisement

Under the agreement, the DOH will work to build an integrated, sustainable, resilient and self-reliant health system to strengthen the country’s capacity to existing and emerging infectious disease threats.

The program will support priority health initiatives covering human immunodeficiency virus, tuberculosis, neglected tropical diseases as well as maternal, newborn and child health.

It will also focus on three key areas, including: strengthening disease surveillance, detection and outbreak response; integrating health service delivery across disease programs; and improving the country’s domestic capacity to finance and manage the health sector.

“Investing in healthcare is investing in our people, our productivity and our future. Through this grant, we are strengthening the country’s ability to respond to health emergencies while building a more resilient and sustainable healthcare system that benefits our people,” Finance Secretary Frederick Go said.

As a grant, the assistance does not carry an obligation for the Philippine government to repay the funds.

Article continues after this advertisement

DOF’s announcement comes two weeks after the United States and the Philippines signed a five-year agreement on July 22, which marked a new phase of bilateral cooperation and joint investment between the two countries.

In a separate statement referring to the joint agreement, the US Embassy said the Philippines had committed about $492 million, or more than P30 billion, to its health systems over the next five years, while the United States intends to provide $193 million, or P11.8 billion.

Article continues after this advertisement

The DOF clarified, however, that the Philippine government’s “co-investment” cited by the US Embassy is separate from the $600-million US grant.

“The DOH’s ‘co-investment’ mentioned (by the US Embassy) will not be utilized only for the implementation of SOAG. It is an allocation made by the DOH for all its disease surveillance and health services,” the DOF told the Inquirer. INQ