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| President Rodrigo Duterte signed Republic Act 11703 on April 19, 2022, to establish the 300-bed Samar Island Medical Center in Calbayog City. Photo: Rep. Edgar Mary Sarmiento/Facebook |
TACLOBAN CITY – President Rodrigo Roa Duterte signed Republic Act No. 11703, also known as "An Act Establishing in Calbayog City, Province of Samar a Tertiary Hospital, to be Known as the Samar Island Medical Center and Appropriating Funds Therefor" on Tuesday, April 19, 2022,
The 300-bed capacity Samar Island Medical Center will be established through Republic Act No. 11703, which was primarily authored by Rep. Martin Romualdez (Leyte), Rep. Yedda Romualdez (Tingog Partylist), Rep. Edgar Mary S. Sarmiento (1st Dist, Samar), Rep. Angelina Tan (Quezon Province), Rep. Paul Ruiz Daza (Northern Samar), Rep. Jose Ong Jr. (Parañaque).
Senator Christopher Go, Senator Francis Pangilinan, Senator Ramon Revilla Jr., Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri, and Senator Franklin Drilon were the primary authors of the Senate counterpart bill.
"Soon our people no longer have to go to Tacloban and travel 5 hours just to get medical attention. Soon all they have to do is go to Calbayog City and get medical treatment in OUR Samar Island Medical Center. From MRI, CT Scans, Dialysis, and other important Medical Treatments, we can now help ALL Samarnons on our own Island. Samar Island is the third-largest island in the country with a population of over 2 million residents and soon we will finally have our first and only tertiary hospital," Samar 1st District Representative Edgar Mary S. Sarmiento said in a statement.
Sarmiento thanked all of the bill's co-authors in the House and Senate for their hard work in getting the bill passed. He also expressed gratitude to President Duterte, "In signing this bill into law, President Duterte has shown once again that he is indeed a Father to all Filipinos. Salamat Tatay Digong for making Samar Island Medical Center a reality for Samarnons."
The Samar Island Medical Center is regarded as one of the largest and most modern hospitals in the region, with full facilities to be managed by the Department of Health. —AJ Yes/Tacloban News Update