Death of Nobel laureate shows gov’t neglect of health care system

Progressive groups said the death of American chemist and Nobel laureate Richard Heck who was denied admission in a private hospital shows glaring proof of “a profit-driven health care system and government neglect in the Philippines.”

Heck, 84, died on October 9 in a public hospital, where he was brought after being denied admission in a private health care facility where he had unpaid bills. He was jointly awarded the Nobel Prize for Chemistry along with two Japanese chemists in 2010. He retired and lived in Quezon City in 2006, with his Filipina wife Socorro, who died in 2012.