AKSYON Demokratiko vice presidential bet Dr. Willie Ong has expressed alarm over the 800,000 recorded deaths in 2021 even as he said that reducing the total number of deaths per year should be a top government priority.

Ong’s remarks were in response to a statement made by Commission on Population and Development executive director Dr. Juan A. Perez that the country has hit its highest mortality rate in 63 years as it tallied an estimated 800,000 deaths by the end of 2021.

In his regular Facebook livestream, Ong said many of these deaths are preventable if only we had built more hospitals and improved access to healthcare services. This, he said, will give the country a fighting chance in lowering its mortality rate.

“Poor patients cannot access tele-consults or use Zoom apps. They need face-to-face check-ups. We need to build more hospitals to address the increasing death toll in the last 2 years of the pandemic. This trend cannot continue anymore,” said Ong.

According to the PopCom report, ischemic heart disease is the top cause of death in the country with more than 110,000 Filipinos dying from the illness in 2021. This represents an increase of 24,000 deaths as compared to around 86,000 deaths due to heart disease in 2020.

Meanwhile, more than 75,000 people died due to COVID-19 in 2021, making it the second leading cause of death among Filipinos.

Ong, a cardiologist and internist, maintained that the national government should invest in healthcare, health professionals, and free medicines to address the top killer diseases in the country.

Ong said the government should establish several hospitals, such as an infectious disease hospital to focus on future pandemics, a national cancer center to care for cancer patients, and 17 additional regional hospitals to widen access to health care.

“We should provide free medicines for high blood pressure, diabetes, COVID-19, heart disease, and mental health because this will reduce the total number of deaths per year,” Ong said.

“The national government should buy newly discovered COVID-19 medicines that can reduce hospitalization and deaths by 88%, just like what Manila is doing under Mayor Isko’s leadership,” he said.

The vice presidential aspirant added that the 10-storey fully equipped Bagong Ospital ng Maynila Medical Center built by the Manila LGU in two years can be a model that can be replicated into 17 regional hospitals.

Ong noted that the government should also improve the welfare of healthcare workers in the country. “Dapat ‘yung sweldo ng doctors, nurses ‘yun talaga ang tutuunan ng pansin. Minsan kahit may hospital bed ay wala namang doktor at nurse,” he said.

Health is a priority among the 10 pillars of the Bilis Kilos Economic Agenda recently unveiled by Aksyon Demokrartiko presidential bet Isko Moreno Domagoso.

To improve the country’s health care system, Moreno said his administration will build more public hospitals and health care centers throughout the country, with a target of providing 107,000 additional hospital beds in his first 1,000 days in office.

The 47-year-old presidential aspirant also plans to achieve a ratio of one doctor per 1,000 Filipinos equitably distributed across the country by providing scholarships to 10,000 medical students per year. He also promised to increase the salary of nurses and other healthcare workers.

But foremost will be the rollout of a clear pandemic response roadmap that aims to fully protect all Filipinos against COVID-19 by December 31 of 2022 to open up the economy, and make the country prepared for future pandemics.