- Carcar's provincial hospital opens a new ER, a child ICU and a mammography unit
- Carcar hands out 100 swine breeder stocks to local hog raisers
- Minimum wage in Carcar rises to ₱582 a day from 14 October
- Jeepney fares went up on Monday, and PISTON struck in Cebu City on Tuesday
- Visayas grid on yellow alert two evenings running; Cebu is the tightest island
Carcar's provincial hospital opens a new ER, a child ICU and a mammography unit
Cebu Provincial Hospital in Carcar, which serves about 21 towns in southern Cebu, has opened three new facilities: an emergency room split into bays for internal medicine, pediatrics, obstetrics and surgery; a pediatric intensive care unit for critically ill children; and a mammography unit for breast cancer screening. The work was supported by the Department of Health in Central Visayas and Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center, and the hospital is working toward a Level 2 upgrade.
A child who needs intensive care can now be treated in Carcar instead of being taken up to Cebu City. A mammogram costs ₱2,100 if you pay yourself, and is free for qualified PhilHealth YAKAP members who have a clinical assessment and a referral, so ask your health center about the referral first. The report did not give opening dates for each unit; call the hospital before going.
Source: Philstar / The Freeman
Carcar hands out 100 swine breeder stocks to local hog raisers
The city government, through the City Veterinary Office, distributed 100 swine breeder stocks to local hog raisers on 24 September, with the Department of Agriculture 7, Propork and the Cebu Visayas Integrated Producers cooperative. Carcar is one of 16 Cebu towns and cities recognised for active surveillance against African swine fever, which lets backyard raisers transport and sell pigs without a negative test for every shipment. The province is on watch after ASF was confirmed in Ginatilan.
More breeders should mean more local pigs for Carcar's lechon trade. The certification only holds while Carcar stays clean, so the vet office is asking raisers to keep pens clean, limit visitors to farms and report any sick pigs or sudden deaths right away.
Source: SunStar
Minimum wage in Carcar rises to ₱582 a day from 14 October
The national wage commission has affirmed a ₱42 daily increase for Central Visayas. In Class A areas the minimum rises from ₱540 to ₱582 a day; in Class B areas from ₱500 to ₱542. Domestic workers get ₱7,500 a month, up from ₱7,000. It takes effect on 14 October and covers more than 300,000 workers. Struggling small businesses have 75 days from that date to apply for a temporary exemption. Labor groups say the increase is not enough.
Carcar is Class A, so the new minimum here is ₱582. The wage order names the City of Carcar in Class A, even though some news reports left Carcar off their lists. For someone working full time, the increase comes to about ₱1,092 more a month. Check your first pay after 14 October.
Sources: DOLE Wage Order No. ROVII-27, The Freeman, SunStar
Jeepney fares went up on Monday, and PISTON struck in Cebu City on Tuesday
Higher fares took effect nationwide on 28 September. The traditional jeepney minimum is now ₱14 for the first 4 kilometers, up from ₱13, and ₱2 for each kilometer after that, up from ₱1.80. Modern jeepneys go to ₱17 and ₱2.40 per kilometer. Buses, taxis and ride-hailing fares were adjusted too. PISTON-Cebu still went on strike on 29 September from 6 a.m. to noon, at four points in Cebu City, saying the increase does not cover operating costs. Cebu City put 15 free buses on the road and kept classes on.
If you ride a jeepney in or out of Carcar, expect to pay about ₱1 more on short trips and a little more on long ones. Bus fares were adjusted too, but the reports did not give the new provincial bus rates. Ask for your student, senior or PWD discount as usual.
Sources: The Freeman, SunStar
Visayas grid on yellow alert two evenings running; Cebu is the tightest island
The grid operator put the Visayas on yellow alert from 5 to 9 p.m. on 27 September and from 5 to 7 p.m. on 28 September. The same three coal units were down both days: Panay Energy Development Unit 3, KEPCO SPC Unit 2 and Therma Visayas Unit 1. The grid operator says Cebu is the worst off in the region: demand is about 1,300 megawatts while plants on the island supply about 900, and the gap is filled with power from Mindanao through a submarine cable.
A yellow alert is a warning that reserves are thin, not a brownout. If it turns red, rotational brownouts can follow, usually in the evening peak when these alerts land. Keep phones and lights charged before 5 p.m. and watch CEBECO I, the co-op that serves most of Carcar, for interruption notices.
Sources: GMA Regional TV, GMA Regional TV, The Manila Times