The Manila Times
THE Department of Health (DOH) has committed to strengthen the country's organ donor sharing system to bolster liver transplant programs. During the celebration of the joint liver transplant program anniversary of The Medical City (TMC) and Rizal Medical Center, Health Secretary Ted Herbosa said he hopes to strengthen the Philippine Network for Organ Sharing (Philnos) — the primary body overseeing organ donation. Herbosa said the agency will help improve donor pathways and improve inter-hospital coordination. Since The Medical City started the liver transplant program in 2011, it has successfully performed 30 transplant procedures. The partnership between the two hospitals has helped make liver transplant more accessible for the average Filipino. “These efforts move us closer to a system where more Filipino patients can receive timely and life-saving transplant resources,” Herbosa said. Dr. Vanessa de Villa, director of the Center for Liver Health and Transplant at TMC, said growth has been slow due to lack of donors, with four cases since the partnership started, all of whom are children. “Growing the program was a painstaking task because of similar problems that lingered: finances, costs, donors. Overseas competition was stiff, and the lure of going abroad for LT (liver transplant) was strong. Unfortunately, there are those who espouse helping our countrymen seek help abroad, rather than here at home,” said de Villa. Most Filipino liver transplant patients go to India where the procedure is cheaper. Herbosa said that since the partnership was launched, the cost of a typical liver transplant that used to be P5 million has been lowered to P2.4 million — comparable to the price in India. Herbosa added he is working with the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) to establish a Z benefit package that will shoulder the cost of liver transplants for patients. While the state insurer has benefit packages for kidney and hepatitis-related conditions, a specific package for liver transplant has not been established. Dr. Maria Rica Lumague, Medical Center Chief II of Rizal Medical Center, told The Manila Times she is hopeful that the Z benefit package will be approved by PhilHealth.
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