The Provincial Board (PB) set aside a P25.8 million supplemental budget for provincial and district hospitals in its session last Monday.
Provincial Board member Miguel Magpale said the budget will fund the purchase of medicines and medical and food supplies.
“(These) expenditure items for supplemental are essential in the delivery of hospital services,” Magpale said. The P25.8 million is taken from the general fund this year.
Provincial Budget Officer Danilo Rodas said this was the seventh SB requested by the executive department.
Rodas told the PB that the drugs and supplies consignment system is not yet fully implemented.
He admitted they had a problem in the procurement of drugs and medicines because not all suppliers give their quota for consignment.
“The consignment is being centralized at the Capitol so it was not included in the budget, that is why the hospitals requested for another budget. Their procurement supposedly should be in their budget,” Rodas said.
The creation of additional offices like the Cebu Provincial Anti-Drug Abuse Office also allowed for additional supplemental budgets.
“It’s beyond our control. Ideally we only had three to four SBs,” Rodas said.