Chronic kidney disease (CKD) affects an estimated 2.3 million Filipinos, according to the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth), which highlights the importance of having dialysis centers built in all regional and provincial hospitals nationwide.
Senator Jinggoy Estrada zeroed in on this issue as he called for the passage of Senate Bill No. 800, one of the four proposed legislations under the title ‘Dialysis Center Act,’ that are currently pending at the committee level of the Senate.
Under his proposal, all national, regional, and provincial government hospitals will be mandated to maintain a dialysis center—with complete dialysis machine, equipment, and supplies—within two years from the enactment of the bill.
Estrada underscored the necessity of this measure, so that CKD patients in rural areas would not be deprived of access to regular hemodialysis treatments. Kidney diseases emerged as one of the leading causes of death among Filipinos.
“Sophisticated medical equipment and advanced facilities are concentrated in highly urbanized cities. Consequently, patients from rural areas often need to travel long distances, which incurs high costs, including travel expenses. For patients with kidney disorders who require regular dialysis, these financial burdens can be especially challenging,” the senator noted.
As such, Estrada seeks to institutionalize the establishment of dialysis wards or centers in all provincial hospitals that will be free of charge for indigent patients. “By doing so, it may be possible to mitigate the impact of CKD on individuals and society as a whole,” he said.
One Filipino develops chronic renal failure every hour, or about 120 Filipinos per million population every year. The Philippine Society of Nephrology (PSN) said diabetes and hypertension are two of the top common causes of CKD among patients.
Estrada released his statement in time for the observation of World Kidney Day in the Philippines on March 14. PSN is set to mark this event in an effort to combat the escalating rates of CKD and other kidney-related diseases in the country.