In the meantime, Go offered medical assistance to the sick and elderly. He also advised them to avail of the services of the Malasakit Center at the Ilocos Training and Regional Medical Center (ITRMC) in San Fernando City.
The Malasakit Center is a one-stop shop which aims to provide convenient access to the medical assistance programs offered by the DSWD, Department of Health, Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, and Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office. The program was institutionalized under the Malasakit Centers Act of 2019, which Go primarily authored and sponsored in the Senate.
“Sa 23 years kong pagsisilbi sa ilalim ni Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte, nakita ko araw-araw ‘yung mga problema ng bansa. Maraming mahihirap ang pumupunta ng Davao noon para humingi ng tulong sa kanilang pampaospital. Ubos na panahon nila, ubos pa pera nila sa pamasahe,” recalled the lawmaker.
“Sabi ko, bakit ba natin pinapahirapan ang mga Pilipino kung pera naman nila ‘yan. Kaya nung naging senador ako, itinulak ko ang Malasakit Centers Act. Target nito ay ‘zero balance’ para wala ng babayaran ang mga poor at indigent,” he explained.
To conclude, Go recognized 2nd District Representative Sandra Eriguel, Governor Francisco Ortega III, Vice Governor Mario Ortega, Bagulin Mayor Virgilio Flor and Vice Mayor Jaime Lictao, Burgos Mayor Robert Madarang Jr. and Vice Mayor Isidro delos Reyes, Naguilian Mayor Nieri Flores and Vice Mayor Reynaldo Flores, and other local officials for their efforts to support their constituents through the COVID-19 crisis.
He vowed to continue assisting the long-term recovery efforts of La Union in his capacity as Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Finance. He earlier supported the construction of various roads in Bagulin, Burgos, Naguilian, Rosario and San Gabriel; and the construction of a flood control structure along the Bauang River Basin in Naguilian.
Other major initiatives include the construction of multipurpose centers in Caba and San Fernando City, construction of a slope protection in Bacnotan, acquisition of multipurpose vehicles and rehabilitation of a multipurpose building in Balaoan, and acquisition of an ambulance and a multipurpose vehicle in Bangar.
To improve the delivery of vital health services, Go has also successfully pushed for the bill that became Republic Act No. 11562, which increased the bed capacity of the Rosario District Hospital.
More recently, he sponsored Senate Bill No. 2342 which seeks to increase the bed capacity of the ITRMC from 300 to 800 beds. The measure has been approved on the third and final reading in the Senate, together with 14 other local hospital bills that he also sponsored.
Similar distributions were held the previous day, February 10, for 187 displaced workers in Caba and Bauang. (OSBG)