Photo courtesy of PNA
Laguna Gov. Sol Aragones announced the deployment of nine ambulances, the opening of six additional community pharmacies and the expansion of free maintenance medicines as part of the province’s healthcare initiatives.
Aragones unveiled the programs during her first State of the Province Address at the Laguna Sports Complex in Santa Cruz on Monday.
The Ambulance on the Go program will establish a centralized emergency hotline where residents can request immediate medical transport and assistance.
The initiative is scheduled to begin in October in Laguna’s fourth district, which covers Santa Cruz and 15 other municipalities in the eastern part of the province.
Provincial officials were still setting up the hotline and training medical personnel ahead of the rollout. Aragones said more ambulances would be deployed to other districts as funding became available.
The governor also said the province had completed an Akay ni Gob Botika in each of its 24 municipalities and six cities, with plans to open another branch in every city to serve the growing population.
Laguna’s population increased to 3,687,345 in 2024 from 3,382,193 in 2020, according to the latest census data.
Aragones said free maintenance medicines for hypertension, high cholesterol and elevated blood sugar would increase from four to 10 types, while upgrades and additional equipment were being prepared for the province’s eight district hospitals, provincial hospital and Laguna Mega Clinic.