CEBU Gov. Pamela Baricuatro has approved a P1.3 billion capital outlay to upgrade the Province’s 16 district and provincial hospitals, according to Capitol’s Facebook page on Thursday, Sept. 11, 2025,
The funds will be released in two tranches, with P650 million allocated for hospital infrastructure this year and another P650 million proposed for the 2026 budget.
The investment is part of Baricuatro’s plan to improve the public healthcare system.
The first P650 million was first confirmed by Capitol health consultant Dr. Elisse “Nikki” Catalan, Baricuatro’s daughter, in an interview with SunStar Cebu’s online news and commentary program Beyond the Headlines last Sept. 1.
The capital outlay will be used to upgrade infirmaries to Level 1 facilities and Level 1 facilities to Level 2.
Out of the 16 hospitals run by the Provincial Government, 10 are infirmaries, four are Level 1 facilities and two are Level 2 facilities.
Reform
When Baricuatro took office, she discovered a healthcare system with numerous problems.
In her first State of the Province Address (Sopa) on Aug. 29, Baricuatro reported that some patients were forced to buy their own cotton for treatment.
“In 60 days, we have already found a lot of things that are wrong. In the next three years, you will see a lot of changes,” Baricuatro said in her Sopa.
Within the first two months of her administration, Baricuatro’s office hired 78 doctors and 233 nurses. On her third month as governor, the Capitol hired an additional 25 doctors and 160 nurses to address staff shortages. / CDF