MVP group eyes chain of cancer treatment facilities

The group of businessman Manuel V. Pangilinan is investing in a chain of cancer treatment centers, building a brand-new hospital for children somewhere in Metro Manila and upgrading the capacity of Makati Medical Center.

These are some of the expansion plans of Metro Pacific Hospital Holdings Inc. (MPHHI), which is currently in the thick of discussions to sell down a portion of shares held by parent conglomerate Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC).

While the biggest hospitals under the 14-member MPHHI group already operate oncology centers, MPIC chief financial officer David Nicol said the investment in a chain of treatment clinics – sometimes independent of the existing network and sometimes part of it – would help fill the local gap in cancer treatment facilities.

Last February, President Rodrigo Duterte signed Republic Act 11215 or the National Integrated Cancer Control Act, which provides the framework for an integrated and comprehensive approach to health development, family-centered cancer control policies and programs, as well as interventions at all levels of the existing health care delivery system.

MPIC chair Manuel V. Pangilinan also announced a potential investment in a 300 to 500-bed children’s hospital. This will be the first time for the group – which has grown its portfolio through a string of hospital acquisitions beginning with Makati Med in 2007 – to build a hospital from scratch.

Nicol also said that aside from building a new women’s center, the group is embarking on a program to expand the capacity of Makati Med. About P5 billion to P6 billion may be needed to build a new facility, possibly a high-rise tower, to add 250 rooms to the current hospital./TSB