Over 1,000 coconut farmers in Antique benefitted from the mobile health and medical services (MHMS) of the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA).
Gregory Teñoso, PCA division chief I for Aklan and Antique, said in an interview on Wednesday that coconut farmers from Pandan were served on Aug. 29, Hamtic on Aug. 30 and Anini-y on Nov. 14
He said that for the first time, they brought the MHMS to the province as part of the assistance included in the Coconut Farmers and Industry Development Plan (CFIDP).
“Aside from free medical checkups, there were also dental extraction, laboratories and free medicines that were given to coconut farmers,” he said.
Teñoso added that they are planning to conduct the same activities in the towns of Patnongon, San Remigio and Caluya.
“We are also hopeful that by next month, we could already forge a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the Antique provincial government for the hospitalization benefit of the farmers,” he said.
He said that coconut farmers, registered with the National Coconut Farmers Registry System (NCFRS), and their dependents could avail the hospitalization benefit of up to PHP40,000.
This benefit is on top of the coverage of the Philippine Health Insurance Corp.
“By next year, if the MOA could already be signed by the PCA with the Antique provincial government, then farmers and their dependents could already avail the hospitalization benefit in the eight district hospitals of the province,” Teñoso said. (PNA)