President Marcos inaugurates first Valor Clinic in Batangas

MANILA, Philippines — To expand healthcare access for military veterans, retirees and their dependents, President Marcos yesterday inaugurated the country’s first Veterans Access to Lifetime Optimized Healthcare or Valor Clinic at a facility of the Philippine Air Force (PAF) in Lipa, Batangas.

Malacañang said the Valor Clinic would decentralize veteran healthcare through a network of primary care services offered in military treatment facilities and installations across the country.

At present, healthcare services for veterans, retirees and their dependents are concentrated at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center (VMMC) in Quezon City, which handles around 260,000 outpatient cases annually.

The PAF’s Fernando Air Base in Lipa is one of five pilot facilities covered under Phase 1 of the project. The others are the Fort Bonifacio General Hospital in Taguig, Northern Luzon Command in Tarlac, Southern Luzon Command in Quezon and Camp Riego de Dios in Cavite.

Each facility will be manned by local medical teams and equipped with telehealth links to the VMMC, outsourced diagnostic tests and a centralized system for maintenance medications.

The clinics will focus on preventive medicine, chronic care management and health research as well as serve civilian defense communities.

The project’s Phase 2 will include the Western Command in Palawan, Eastern Mindanao Command in Davao, Western Mindanao Command in Zamboanga, Brigadier General Benito Ebuen Air Base Hospital in Mactan and the Government Arsenal Medical Facility in Bataan.

The final phase of the program will cover the Kuta Major Cesar L. Sang-an Hospital in Zamboanga del Sur, Camp Peralta Station Hospital in Capiz, Camp Evangelista Station Hospital in Cagayan de Oro, Camp Melchor F. Dela Cruz Station in Isabela, Camp Siongco Station Hospital in Maguindanao and the 8th Infantry Division Hospital at Camp General Vicente Lukban in Samar. 

Marcos reaffirmed his administration’s support for the PAF and recognized its role in safeguarding the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.