President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr., yesterday lauded the quick response to the widespread flooding triggered by the combined effects of tropical storm Crising and the southwest monsoon (habagat) but decried the state of evacuation centers.
Relief and rescue operations were prompt, he pointed out, but overcrowded shelters raised alarms over potential disease outbreaks.
“One person gets sick there, and the illness will spread like wildfire,” the chief executive said after visiting two evacuation centers in Rizal province.
To address this, the President ordered that every evacuation site be equipped with medical teams from both local and national government agencies.
“Our national duty is to ensure there’s enough medicine and medical equipment on the ground,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Department of Health (DOH) implemented price freezes on 148 essential medicines in areas officially declared under a state of calamity.
In a statement on Thursday, the health department said this measure aims to prevent overpricing and ensure affordable access to critical drugs for communities affected by disasters.
The price freeze, covering branded and generic medicines, will remain effective for 60 days from its enforcement in each calamity-hit area.
It covers anesthetics, antibiotics, antihypertensives, antidiabetics, and analgesics, to vitamins and minerals.
Among the medicines on the list are commonly used drugs such as ibuprofen, paracetamol, amlodipine, metformin, and amoxicillin.
High-cost medications like ketamine, enoxaparin, and meropenem are also covered, with fixed price ceilings to protect patients from excessive markups.
Essential medications for chronic conditions such as hypertension and diabetes, including losartan, captopril, and gliclazide, are also under price control.
Respiratory medicines such as salbutamol inhalers and fluticasone-salmeterol combinations are included to aid patients with asthma and other respiratory illnesses.
The list also includes life-saving emergency medicines such as naloxone, atropine, and epinephrine, which are vital in critical care, the DOH said.
For its part, the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD), together with its three key shelter agencies, announced the rollout of a payment moratorium and calamity loan to ease the burden of victims affected by consecutive tropical cyclones and the southwest monsoon.
Housing czar Jose Ramon Aliling said the move is part of a coordinated response of housing agencies to help families recover from the inclement weather.
“As directed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., we are ensuring that affected families receive urgent support to help them recover,” he noted.
The Social Housing Finance Corp., National Housing Authority, and National Home Mortgage Finance Corp. have implemented a one-month moratorium on amortization payments for their beneficiaries in areas affected by typhoons.
Likewise, the Pag-IBIG Fund has activated its calamity loan program in all of its branches nationwide to serve typhoon victims, including insurance claims for current Pag-IBIG housing loan borrowers whose properties were damaged.
Qualified members in a cyclone-affected area may borrow up to 90 percent of their total Pag-IBIG Fund savings, including the monthly savings, employer counterpart contributions, and earned dividends.
“DHSUD and our key shelter agencies are closely working with LGUs to guarantee proper coordination and fast implementation on the ground. This is a united effort to provide relief and help families get back on their feet,” Aliling said.
