DBP lends P760M to health care facility

State-owned Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) has signed a term loan agreement amounting to P760 million with a hospital chain to enhance the health care facilities and
boost the operating capacity of its branch in Pangasinan, a top official said.

DBP President and Chief Executive Officer Emmanuel Herbosa said that the bank’s credit assistance to Allied Care Experts (ACE) Medical Center-Pangasinan Inc. would be used to partially finance the construction of a seven-storey hospital building and the acquisition of various medical machinery and equipment.

“DBP would continue to support initiatives that improve the delivery of quality health care services to our countrymen,” Herbosa said. “Companies such as ACE Medical Center perform a critical role in the country’s efforts to emerge victorious from the current public health emergency.”

DBP is the seventh largest bank in the country in terms of assets and provides credit support to four strategic sectors of the economy — infrastructure and logistics; micro, small and medium enterprises; social services and community development; and the environment.

ACE Medical Center is a nationwide network of hospitals established by a group of doctors and other professionals led by founding Chairman Amado Manuel Enriquez Jr. Its first branch was established in 2011 in Subic Baypointe and the company now operates nine branches across the country.

The project is to improve the bed to population ratio in the Pangasinan area from 1:1,019 to 1:930 while providing first-grade treatment and management for patients with advanced medical equipment and top-notch medical professionals.

DBP Executive Vice President for Development Lending Jose Gabino Dimayuga said the 102-bed medical center is expected to benefit the residents of Dagupan City, and the nearby municipalities of Lingayen, Binmaley, Calasiao, Mangaldan, Manaoag, Mapandan, San Fabian, San Jacinto, and Santa Barbara with a total population of about 700,000.

THE TIMES