Solon seeks passage of bill granting free dialysis to the poor

Sen. Sonny Angara (politics.com.ph)

MANILA — Senator Sonny Angara is seeking the passage of a bill that will grant free dialysis treatment to indigent patients.

Amid the increasing number of kidney patients in the country, Angara said most patients can not afford to undergo dialysis.

He added that some even die without having the chance to get  proper treatment.

“Patients from the provinces, who are suffering from kidney disorder, have to travel all the way to urban cities just to avail themselves of dialysis treatment, which is needed on a regular and sustained basis.

Some patients even die without a chance to undergo dialysis because they simply could not afford it,” Angara said in a statement on Friday.

Citing a data from the Philippine Network for Organ Sharing under the Department of Health, Angara said that nearly 23,000 patients underwent dialysis treatment due to kidney failure in 2013, a huge jump from the 4,000 cases recorded in 2004.

Through Senate Bill No. 2849 or the Dialysis Center Act, Angara seeks to require all national, regional and provincial hospitals “to establish, operate and maintain a dialysis ward or unit to ensure that dialysis treatment will be available, accessible and cost-effective especially those living in the rural areas.”

The treatment will be free of charge to patients whose combined annual family income does not exceed P30,000.

“In line with the government’s efforts to reform the health sector and provide Filipinos with comprehensive health services, local government units must be tapped to make healthcare services more affordable and accessible,” Angara said.