Bacolod City, Philippine wants medical tourism investment

Lilia de Lima of the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) has applauded Bacolod City’s success in developing economic zones and stressed its potential for medical tourism. PEZA’s thrust is to push development outside Cebu and Metro Manila; Bacolod City offers a close partnership between the local government and the private sector, with the new Bacolod Silay Airport. “Bacolod is ideal for medical tourism, as it has very good doctors and nurses”, claims De Lima.

Lilia de Lima of the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) has applauded Bacolod City’s success in developing economic zones and stressed its potential for medical tourism. PEZA’s thrust is to push development outside Cebu and Metro Manila; Bacolod City offers a close partnership between the local government and the private sector, with the new Bacolod Silay Airport. “Bacolod is ideal for medical tourism, as it has very good doctors and nurses”, claims De Lima.

PEZA has 207 special economic zones all over the country, 127 of which are IT ecozones, 69 manufacturing zones, nine tourism economic zones, one medical tourism park and one medical tourism centre. PEZA stresses the need to keep investors happy, and to free them of red tape. The Bacolod City Sanggunian has amended the city ordinance that encouraged the development of special economic zone for information technology parks and buildings to now include retirement villages and medical tourism. Bacolod Councilor Jocelle Batapa-Sigue and principal author of the change, says that the availability of economic zones under PEZA is one of the requisites to attract investors to the city. The ordinance also defines medical tourism as travel to the Philippines for the purpose of availing quality but affordable healthcare services or treatment of illnesses and health problems in order to maintain one’s health and well-being.

PEZA has three official definitions-

• A medical tourism special economic zone is a selected area which is highly developed or which has the potential to be developed in accordance with the standards of the Department of Health (DOH) to have support facilities and services required for health and wellness.

• A medical tourism park is an area which has been developed into a complex capable of providing medical infrastructures and other support facilities, in compliance with DOH and Department of Trade (DOT) requirements, such as but not limited to medical accommodations, wellness centers, spa, health farms, sports and recreational facilities, and rehabilitation facilities required by medical tourism enterprises, as well as amenities required by foreign patients including professional and workers involved in medical tourism activities.

• A medical tourism centre is either a medical hospital or a stand-alone building that hosts specialized medical clinics and other specialized medical related activities, in compliance with DOH requirements, the whole of part of which has been developed to provide infrastructures and other support facilities required by medical tourism enterprises, and which may also provide amenities required by foreign patients including professionals and workers involved in medical tourism activities.

A meeting of local hospitals active in medical tourism reported that medical tourism in the Philippines has huge potential but it is growing rather slowly. Jun Amistoso of Asian Hospital reported 80 foreign patients every month. They come mostly from Micronesia, Taipan, Marianas islands, and Guam, all American territories. A few come from California. 70 percent of foreign patients are between 40 and 60 years old. It has a new procedure called minimally invasive surgery that attracts foreign patients. The Makati Medical Center plans to run a full campaign for medical tourism soon. Evelyn Yumolt said the hospital has made it a policy not do any transplant on a foreign or local patient unless the donor is a relative. Yumol and Amistoso argue that a real problem is the few direct flights from the country of the patient to the Philippines, and ill people cannot be expected to make two or three flight changes.

HEAL Philippines is a new partnership between the government and the private sector for the promotion and development of the country’s medical tourism industry. Health and Wellness Alliance of the Philippines (HEAL Philippines) is an organization of hospitals, clinics, spas and other medical tourism providers seeking to promote and develop the Philippines as a prime destination for global healthcare and retirement. Joyce Alumno of HEAL Philippines says, “The Philippines is quickly gaining ground in being a leading hub of health and wellness in the world. Our hospitals are better equipped than many hospitals of developed countries, complemented with the unique Filipino hospitality.”