Latest in Orly MercadoThe National Irrigation Administration (NIA) has no power to stop the conversion of irrigated farmlands to commercial or industrial use, its administrator admitted Saturday, as both he and a former senator flagged the long-running absence of a National Land Use Plan as a critical gap undermining…
The Philippines has more irrigable land than previously thought, with the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) revising its estimate upward to 4.2 million hectares after factoring in upland communities previously excluded from national irrigation planning, its administrator said Saturday. NIA…
Earthquake drills and the duck-cover-hold protocol are not enough to save lives if the buildings people are inside are not structurally sound, the director of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) warned Saturday, saying strict compliance of the National Building Code…
No technology currently exists that can predict the exact date, time, or location of an earthquake, the director of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) said Saturday, stressing that preparedness—not prediction—remains the only reliable defense against seismic…
Tuberculosis cases in the Philippines are rebounding after years of decline, with multi-drug resistant and extensively drug-resistant strains on the rise—a trend the country’s top health insurer attributes largely to patients failing to complete their treatment despite medicines being provided for…
PhilHealth is sounding the alarm on the long-term sustainability of its benefit expansion program, with its president and chief executive officer warning that the current pace of growth in benefit costs cannot be maintained beyond 2026 without a fundamental shift in how the country’s health…
PhilHealth is looking at deploying artificial intelligence to pre-screen and flag claims as the state health insurer faces a projected surge to 22 million claims in 2026, translating to more than 1.5 million claims per month. In an interview on DZRH News program Special on Saturday on June 13…
PhilHealth benefit payments are projected to reach ₱378 billion in 2026, nearly tripling the ₱119 billion recorded in 2023, as the state health insurer accelerates coverage expansion under the Universal Health Care law, its president and chief executive officer said Saturday. PhilHealth President…
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