The NEDA Board approved the UP-PGH Cancer Center Project during the NEDA Board meeting held on February 2, 2023, Thursday. The Cancer Center Project will be pursued through a Build-Transfer-Operate (BTO) contractual arrangement and implemented by the UP – Philippine General Hospital (UP-PGH), the premiere public hospital in the country. It is a priority project of the University of the Philippines and approved by the Board of Regents under the term of President Danilo L. Concepcion. It is also part of the 20-year masterplan of UP-PGH headed by Dr. Gerardo Legaspi.
The Cancer Center will be located within the UP-PGH campus in Ermita, Manila and will leverage on private sector to design, finance, construct, and commission the standalone center. The partnership with the private sector will allow PGH to free up its non-clinical and non-core functions facility-wide which will ensure that both charity and paying patients enjoy the same standard of quality facilities and services. The partnership will allow the concessionaire to also provide clinical services to self-paying patients in the dedicated private inpatient and outpatient areas.
The Cancer Center will have a total capacity of 300 beds and will bring together into one facility the 150 existing PGH private beds and 150 existing PGH basic or ward beds, outpatient care, cancer diagnostics, and facilities for chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and oncological surgery. As a solicited PPP project, the private partner will design, finance, construct, and commission a new standalone center.
As the implementing agency of the cancer center, UP-PGH will provide all clinical services free of charge for poor patients, with the private sector offering clinical services to self-paying patients. The private partner will provide all the major equipment (initial and replacement), undertake maintenance, and facilities management, including non-clinical services such as cleaning, catering, laundry, and security for the entire hospital. This approach will help free up fiscal space within the government. Through the BTO arrangement, it is estimated that the government will defray costs and save up to Php 37 billion throughout the 30-year cooperation.
The Project will undergo an open and competitive tender process based on the lowest annual payment. “We are very pleased with the approval of the UP-PGH Cancer Center project. This highlights government’s commitment to realize the infrastructure development program outlined in our Philippine Development Plan. This whole of nation approach to development will help provide efficient public services to all Filipinos,” PPP Center Executive Director Ma. Cynthia C. Hernandez said.
The UP-PGH hopes to launch the investor’s conference and formal roll-out of the Project by first quarter this year.
The PPP Center supports the UP-PGH through technical assistance in the project development, procurement, and implementation stages of the Project.
