MANILA - The Department of Health is allotting more than P1 billion in funding for mental health projects in 2017, the highest in the history of the agency.

Secretary Paulyn Ubial said their budget for medicines access program for anti-psychotics or mental health drugs is P100-million. The DOH is also allocating about P1 billion for the upgrade and development of mental health facilities across the country.

"It’s the first time in the Department of Health’s history that we are budgeting more than a billion (pesos) for our facilities and our mental health program," she said in a press conference.

Ubial said the department is scaling up to national level its community-based mental health programs, which was started in Yolanda-hit areas in Eastern Visayas.

"What we’re trying to do is to promote community-based treatment for mental illnesses and we’re training the frontline health officers, the municipal health officers and city health officers to actually do the assessment and in some cases, provide treatment," she said.