Ayala, GE invest P1.3B to open 100 clinics by 2020
By Krista A. M. Montealegre,
National Correspondent
AYALA Corp. is ramping up the expansion of its health care business in partnership with US-based conglomerate General Electric Co. (GE), spending more than P1 billion through 2020 to achieve its goal of establishing a chain of community-based clinics.
FamilyDOC General Manager Paul H. Darroca said in a briefing on Thursday the goal is to end the year with 24 clinics, with the entry to new markets like Taguig, Pasig and Pateros, and double this to 50 by 2018.
Ayala Healthcare Holdings, Inc. is set to start its expansion in Laguna and Quezon City next year, as part of the P1.3-billion investment program to build a network of 100 primary care clinics by 2020.
Today, AC Health has 11 FamilyDOC clinics located in Las Piñas, Parañaque and Cavite.
In the fourth quarter, FamilyDOC plans to open a new format that will also incorporate the Generika Drugstore, which is 50% owned by Ayala, within the clinic.
“AC Health recognizes the gaps in primary care in the Philippines and seeks to address the current challenges such as long wait times, and the unavailability of doctors and staff. We recognize that middle-class patients are underserved, but willing to pay for quality health care if it gives them good value for money,” Mr. Darroca said.
AC Health tapped GE Healthcare as a technology provider in 2015, but the relationship evolved into a strategic partnership, resulting in the establishment of two pilot clinics in December of the same year.
As FamilyDOC worked on a strategy for sustainable expansion in consultation with GE Healthcare, it settled on a hub-and-spoke model towards growth. In 2016, FamilyDOC opened two hub clinics featuring ultrasound and X-ray services, and four spoke clinics offering regular medical consultation services.
Myra Eskes, president and chief executive officer of GE Healthcare in ASEAN, believes the growing middle class and the government’s announcement for universal health care coverage will present opportunities to expand the health care system.
The challenge is to provide rural areas access quality health care,” Ms. Eskes said.
“By leveraging each of our strength and experiences, I am confident we can implement solutions that address both health care access and affordability for Filipinos,” she said.
The Ayala group’s recent foray into health care is part of the conglomerate’s massive transformation in recent years that saw it enter businesses offering services to a larger part of the population, paving the way for investments in education, water, telecommunications, power and infrastructure.
Shares in Ayala were unchanged at P899 apiece on Thursday.
