Here’s a gentle reminder: patients can avail of free medications for selected mental health conditions courtesy of the Department of Health – Metro Manila Center for Mental Health Development (DOH-MMCHD).
The medications, which are available at different hospitals and health facilities around the Metro, are as follows: Paliperidone palmitate (150mg pre-filled syringe); Escitalopram (10mg); Lithium carbonate (450mg); Quetiapine (200mg); Risperidone (2mg), and Clozapine (100mg).
Eligible patients must email their updated prescriptions to [email protected] and wait for a confirmation before claiming their medicines through various distribution sites including the Philippine General Hospital, Jose R. Reyes Memorial Hospital, and all health centers in Metro Manila.
Started in 2012 by the DOH Pharmaceutical Division and operationalized by the National Center for Mental Health, the Medicine Access Program for Mental Health (MAP-MH) was designed to ensure availability of mental health drugs in the community.
It also follows Administrative Order No. 08, Series of 20021, or the National Mental Health Policy that establishes the guidelines of a sustainable mental health program in the Philippines.
One Facebook user shared her experience when she was able to get 60 tablets of Fluoxetine 20mg tablets for free at the Cembo Health Center.
Her post also included a list of available medicines and access sites for the MAP-MH.
