In an unprecedented move to expand healthcare access for military veterans, retirees, and their dependents, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Friday inaugurated the first Veterans Access to Lifetime Optimized Healthcare (VALOR) Clinic at the Fernando Air Base Hospital in Lipa, Batangas.
While honoring their dedicated service and invaluable contribution to the nation, President Marcos recognized the urgent need to expand services for the country’s more than 400,000 military veterans, retirees, and their dependents, most of whom remain underserved by existing healthcare programs.
Currently, healthcare delivery for military veterans, retirees, and their dependents is heavily concentrated at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center (VMMC) in Quezon City, which handles around 260,000 outpatient visits annually.
According to the VMMC, a 2024 study showed only about 26,500 unique individuals were served, covering just around 7 percent of the total target population — a stark indicator of the need to decentralize care.
Spearheaded by the VMMC, VALOR aims to decentralize veteran healthcare through a network of primary care services located in military treatment facilities and military installations nationwide
The program will be implemented in three phases through 2027, with plans to expand its reach to military hospitals across the Visayas and Mindanao.
The Fernando Air Base site is one of four pilot facilities under Phase 1 of the project. The others are the Northern Luzon Command in Tarlac, Fort Bonifacio General Hospital in Taguig City, Southern Luzon Command in Quezon; and Camp Riego De Dios in Cavite City.
Each facility will be staffed with localized medical teams and equipped with telehealth links to VMMC, outsourced diagnostic tests, and a centralized system for maintenance medications.
The clinics will also focus on preventive medicine, chronic care management, and health research, as well as services for the civilian defense community.
Phase 2 will extend the program to the Western Command in Palawan, the Eastern Mindanao Command in Davao City, the Western Mindanao Command in Zamboanga City, the Brigadier General Benito Ebuen Air Base Hospital in Mactan, and the Government Arsenal Medical Facility in Bataan.
In the final phase, the program will expand to 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 in Camp General Vicente Lukban in Samar. | PND
