Palace deploys 290 ‘doctors to the barrios’

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March 26, 2026 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — To ensure accessible health care services for Filipinos, President Marcos has directed the Department of Health (DOH) to send more physicians to remote areas.

Marcos issued the directive as he led the send-off ceremony for the deployment of 290 “doctors to the barrios” at Malacañang yesterday.

The batch is the largest single deployment in the history of the Doctors to the Barrios or DTTB program, Marcos said.

“The deployment of this batch of doctors comes at a critical moment. Access to health care in rural and geographically isolated areas remains heavily constrained by limited resources, by distance and the absence of medical professionals,” he said.

“I directed the DOH to ensure that we can send doctors to all municipalities, especially to areas that are hard to reach and lack medical services,” he added.

Since the establishment of the DTTB in 1993, the program has deployed close to 3,000 physicians across the country.

The program helps curb the spread of common diseases such as tuberculosis and pneumonia, strengthens responses to women’s health needs and safeguards children’s well-being through proper nutritional guidance.

“Through the sustained implementation of this program, we have reached a historic milestone of zero doctorless municipalities nationwide in 2025,” Marcos said.

The President committed to strengthen  the National Health Workforce Support System by investing in doctors’ training, safety and well-being.