USAID, DOH launch P2.5-billion projects vs tuberculosis

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Health (DOH) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) launched yesterday two five-year projects worth P2.5 billion aimed at strengthening the country’s fight against tuberculosis.

US embassy Charge d’Affaires Michael Klecheski and Health Secretary Francisco Duque III both encouraged Filipino TB patients to avail themselves of the government’s free treatment.

“We consider this a very serious effort for a very serious problem,” Klecheski told reporters after the launch of the TB innovations and TB platforms projects in Barangay Holy Spirit, Quezon City.

“Everybody should be treating their TB if they have it. You might say there’s no excuse,” he said.

The latest funding brings to P6.5 billion the total assistance of the US government to the DOH’s National Tuberculosis Control Program, he said.

The new projects will focus on three regions with highest incidence of TB. These are National Capital Region, Region 3 (Central Luzon) and Region 4A (Calabarzon).

Duque said under the TB innovations project, the DOH would strengthen the health system of local government units, including their database management system to ensure that all TB cases are reported.

Under the TB platforms, the DOH aims to increase TB and drug-resistant TB (DR-TB) case detection and treatment.

“(These new projects) would help us find people with TB,” Duque said.

The DOH secretary stressed the importance of completing treatment to prevent the development of DR-TB.

Duque said about one percent of the population of the Philippines or one million Filipinos have TB.

“There are 260,000 missing TB cases. This is the challenge, where are we going to find them,” he said.

Duque said around 60 Filipinos die of the disease daily.