Asturias Town Earns P2.7M from Birthing Facility

One town in the province of Cebu avails a big financial offer of the government after it’s birthing facility was accredited through the Philippine Health Insurance (PhilHealth) Corp.

The town of Asturias, located in the northwestern part of Cebu province, receives P8,500 for every child being delivered at its birthing center.

Asturias municipal mayor Alan L. Adlawan last week said the local government unit (LGU) of Asturias last year received a total of P2.7 million grant from PhilHealth as assistance to nurse every newly born child’s through the municipality’s birthing center.

“This is a talent given to me by Him up above who discovers the best for my town folks by registering my birthing facilities to Philhealth,” Adlawan said.

Giving incentives to LGUs with accredited birthing facility is a mandate of PhilHealth, Adlawan said.

“May be some of my colleagues have overlooked this privilege from PhilHealth, the reason why they neglected to apply for it,” Adlawan said.

Asked how come other mayors in the province have failed to think about this program, Adlawan said, “that’s one thing I always encourage (to) my co(municipal) chief executives every time we do have meetings,” he added.

Adlawan added that having a legal birthing facility discourages mothers from the usual practice of having child delivery at home.

He said this old practice is really unsafe for both the mother and child due to the lack of proper equipment necessary to take care of them.

Aside from the equipment, the hiring “hilot” or unlicensed midwife to supervise child delivery at home is also endangering the lives of the mother and the child, Adlawan said.

Adlawan also said that child delivery at Asturias birthing center is given free of charge to all.

“So there’s no reason for them to remain at home if they want to deliver a child,” he added.

Through the adoption of Asturias on this modern birthing facility, child delivering at home case is now lessened, Adlawan added.

The mayor said that he is now contemplating to add more rooms and beds of the town’s birthing edifice as additional asset for the center.