Manila, Sept. 17 -- Negros Occidental's provincial government will use its earnings from Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) shares in Capitol-run dialysis hospitals for financial assistance to patients.

In a Facebook post on Thursday, Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz II said Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson issued the directive so that all treatments and procedures in the provincial government-owned and operated hospitals will be free of charge to all Negrense patients.

The shares from the dialysis package include PHP73.35 million each from hospital fees and from the ZRL Group, Inc., operator of the dialysis centers in the three public hospitals.

Along with the PHP8.56 million for professional fees, the three hospitals l...