Oppose the Privatization of Rizal Medical Center!

PRESS STATEMENT
Alliance of Health Workers

June 18, 2012

References:

Jossel I. Ebesate, AHW National President, Mobile number: 0918-9276381

Robert Mendoza, AHW Secretary General, Mobile number: 0932-4649757

The Alliance of Health Workers strongly opposes the privatization of Rizal Medical Center (RMC) through the Memorandum of Agreement between the RMC management and Department of Health with Makati Medical Center (MMC) Foundation to be signed on June 19.

The entry of MMC Foundation in the guise of training and organizational strengthening is privatization in plain and simple terms. The MOA clearly states the move is part of the Public-Private Partnership  program of the government and is intended to be cascaded to other public hospitals.  The MMC Foundation owned by Manny Pangilinan even though registered as non-profit organization is part of the business conglomerate being built by Pangilinan through his hospital-buying spree. Why would MMC be interested in funding RMC reforms if it does not see any profit or income in its partnership?

The partnership with MMC signals the privatization of RMC and will hit first and foremost the poor patients of RMC. DOH Secretary Enrique Ona himself admitted that cost of health services will increase under PPP and privatization. This is already happening in public hospitals like Jose R. Reyes Memorial Medical Center, Amang Rodriguez Memorial Medical Center, and Tondo Medical Center where private companies took over radiology and laboratory services. The private University Physicians' Medical Center inside the Philippine General Hospital premises charges more than twice the cost of diagnostic and laboratory procedures in PGH. 

Workers’ job security and rights are continually attacked in privatization. Examples of this include the MWSS privatization where all workers were made to resign and only those younger or highly qualified were rehired. In corporatized GOCC hospitals, inspite of the income generated by the hospitals, health workers' job security and benefits are not ensured. Health workers in Lung Center of the Philippines, for instance, are being disallowed more than P100,000 worth of benefits per employee deducted upon resignation or retirement.

What is happening in RMC is manifestation of the national government’s plan to privatize public hospitals and public health services. The Aquino government is reneging on its responsibility of improving public health facilities and public hospitals by transferring the burden to the private sector.

In line with Aquino's Kalusugan Pangkalahatan, the private sector is being ushered in so that the government will no longer subsidize public hospital and people’s health.  Instead of allotting adequate fund for RMC and other public hospitals, it is reducing subsidy towards eventual removal (MOOE subsidy gone by 2014, Personal  Services subsidy gone by 2020 based on DOH's Health Care Finance Reform Plan 2010-2020) and transforms public hospitals into self-perpetuating income generating corporate hospitals. This is part of the national economic policies of privatization, deregulation and liberalization implemented by previous governments in obedience to local and foreign business dictates.

The deteriorating situation of people's health and health workers' economic conditions prove the futility of privatization, decreasing government subsidy and increased revenue enhancement long implemented by the government under the Health Sector Reform Agenda and Formula One for Health.  The continuing implementation of such anti-people, anti-health worker policies under Kalusugan Pangkalahatan will spell more sickness and deaths contrary to the grandiose claims of DOH and the Aquino government.

We call on the health workers and the Filipino people to oppose the privatization of RMC and all public hospitals. We call on RMC health workers to stand up for people's health and our rights, and unite with patients, other health workers' organizations, and other sectors to effectively oppose the privatization of health services

Let us continue the tradition of militant organized struggle that is instrumental in our victories in the approval of Magna Carta of Health Workers, the fight against the privatization of hospitals since 1997 and the continuing fight for our jobs, rights, salaries, benefits, and people's health.#