Senator Manuel Lito Lapid led the groundbreaking ceremony for a 94-bed medical facility in Capas, Tarlac adjacent to the town hall on Tuesday, April 30, 2024, as part of the government’s bid to bring health services in every locality through its hospital expansion and equipping program.
TIEZA Chief Operating Officer and General Manager Mark Lapid, Capas Mayor Roseller Rodriguez, Vice Mayor Alexander Espinosa, Sangguniang Bayan Members and contractor Tony De Jesus of Arrowhead Construction are also present during the ceremony.
The Municipality of Capas is classified as a first class municipality comprising of 20 barangays.
Lapid said the total PHP 54-million medical facility will be constructed on a 800-square-meter existing Ospital Ning Capas chargeable to the funding grant from the Senate.
He said the initial PHP 30-million has already been downloaded by the office of Senator Lapid through the Department of Public Works and Highways (DWPH).
“The people of Capas express their deep gratitude to Senator Lapid for selecting our town to benefit from his improved healthcare program, which directly benefits our constituents. Hopefully we can have this done by the end of 2024,” Mayor Rodriguez told iOrbitNews Online.
Lapid added this is another priority project through legislative funding. “What we really need is services for healthcare…Nobody wants to get sick,” Lapid said in an interview.
He stressed that poor residents of Capas are the priority for the health care services to be provided in the new hospital that will be managed by the local government.
He explained the healthcare program in Capas and Tarlac province is in line with the Local Government Code’s provision that mandates local government units to provide various services for the general welfare of their constituents.
The current Ospital Ning Capas has a capacity of 60 beds and operates at a tertiary level, featuring an LGU-run Lingap care center. With an annual budget of 90 million, it allocates only 10 percent of its capacity to private patients, reserving 90 percent for indigent ones. The hospital is staffed by 180 medical frontliners. Upon completion, new services including a blood bank and a dialysis center will be introduced to cater to the 20 barangays of Capas. The hospital will operate at limited capacity once the construction is in full swing.
Lapid is among the seven senators up for re-election in the 2025 mid-term polls. He landed No.1 in the senatorial 2019 elections in Tarlac.
Meanwhile, Barangay O’Donnel also received a multi-purpose truck from Lapid. The groundbreaking ceremony was also attended by congressional, provincial and barangay officials.