Bacolod Iloilo comparison for healthcare, food, crime

[smallchungus]

This isn’t meant to be a which city is better overall post.  These three aspects are really important to my retirement, but especially healthcare quality.  Is Bacolod or Iloilo known for better hospitals/healthcare?  I’ve heard great things about the food in both cities so I’m guessing it may just come down to preference, but I would love to hear your opinions.  Not just local specialties but access to Western options as well.  Is one city considered safer than the other when it comes to crime?  This one I’m not quite as worried about but still interested.  The healthcare comparison is where I’m really coming up short on info when I search online.

[lopburi3]

From my reading healthcare is not a strong point anywhere in Philippines (there is a reason so many work overseas).  But Manila seems to be the go to location for anything serious, with Cebu a distant second.  Iloilo appears to be a good choice for clean environment.  As for western food any large city will have the normal fast food options (but few will have real dining outside of tourist areas). 

[SlappyMc]

On 10/23/2023 at 4:16 PM, lopburi3 said:

From my reading healthcare is not a strong point anywhere in Philippines (there is a reason so many work overseas).  But Manila seems to be the go to location for anything serious, with Cebu a distant second.  Iloilo appears to be a good choice for clean environment.  As for western food any large city will have the normal fast food options (but few will have real dining outside of tourist areas). 

Yes and no. Yes, Manila overall re med care but that does not mean that there are not locales with at least decent (by US standards) care.  Re Cebu, one will be fine at Chong Hua Hospital. Re Iloilo, perhaps, if needed, The Medical City, St. Paul's Hospital, or Qualimed Women's And Children's Hospital. 

Next, they aren't working overseas for health care but instead for jobs (and jobs that pay better than in the PI).

 

Lastly, for the OP, not that anyone sane wants to live in Manila, but if your health well and truly matters then somewhere near either St. Luke's in Quezon City or BGC, or close enough to about a handful of facilities in Makati.  Also, depends on what exactly is wrong with you. Since some facilities overall are not all that but may do one, a couple, or a few things rather well. Now to end where I began, sorry, but St. Luke's and a handful in Makati are as good as just about anywhere else in the world. Why some of us here in the US write our US elected reps asking that the law be changed to allow use of Medicare overseas at approved facilities. I mean, it's not like there's not something reasonably close:

 

https://tricare.mil/selectoverseas