Public hospital, Ermita, Manila. Trunkline answered daily, 6am to 10pm.
Philippine General Hospital
The national referral hospital — around 1,500 beds on Taft Avenue in Ermita, the cheapest serious care in the country and the most crowded.
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PGH
Ask for “PGH” — the initials are what everyone uses, not the full name. On Taft Avenue in Ermita, beside the LRT-1 Pedro Gil station and a few minutes from Rizal Park.
- TypePublic — the National University Hospital, run by the University of the Philippines Manila and the national government referral centre
- BedsAbout 1,500
- AddressTaft Avenue, Ermita, Manila 1000, Metro Manila
- Trunkline+63 2 8554 8400
- Websitepgh.gov.ph
- HoursTrunkline answered daily, 6am to 10pm
- LanguagesEnglish and Filipino — medicine here is taught and practised in English, though ward staff will switch to Filipino among themselves
- Opened1910
- On the mapOpen in Google Maps
PGH is the country’s public referral hospital, run by the University of the Philippines Manila on Taft Avenue in Ermita, ten minutes from Rizal Park and the Malate hotels. With roughly 1,500 beds it is the largest hospital in the Philippines and it takes the cases nobody else will. The medicine is serious and the price is a fraction of the private hospitals; the queues, the crowding and the paperwork are what you pay instead.
What it is known for
Being the hospital of last resort for the whole country, and being very good at it. Opened in 1910 and run by the University of the Philippines Manila, the Philippine General Hospital is designated the National University Hospital and the national government referral centre: around 1,500 beds, of which roughly 1,100 are charity beds, and the specialists that provincial hospitals send their hardest cases to. It is also a teaching hospital, so the doctors seeing you are supervised by consultants who teach the subject. What it does not have is space or calm.
Who it suits
Travellers without insurance or without money, anyone who needs serious care at a price they can actually pay, and anyone taken ill or hurt in Ermita, Malate or Intramuros, where it is simply the nearest large hospital. Expect long waits in the outpatient areas, crowded corridors and a service that is public in every sense; the emergency department triages hard, so a genuine emergency is seen and a minor one waits. If you are insured and mobile, one of the private hospitals will be quicker and calmer.
Cost and insurance
Much the cheapest of the five, and the reason to know it exists: charges at a government hospital are a small fraction of the private rate, and the charity wards are there for people who cannot pay. That does not make it free for a visitor, and payment is still expected — a deposit for private-service admissions, and settlement before discharge. Insurers do not direct-bill a hospital like this, so pay and claim: ask at the billing window for an itemised receipt and an English medical certificate, both of which are routine requests.
Getting there
On Taft Avenue in Ermita, next to the University of the Philippines Manila campus and a few minutes from Rizal Park, the Malate hotels and Intramuros. The LRT-1 Pedro Gil station is beside it, which on Taft Avenue at rush hour is often quicker than a car. Grab and taxis are easy from Malate and Ermita; from Makati allow half an hour or more. The trunkline, +63 2 8554 8400, is answered from 6am to 10pm.
Details checked against the hospital’s own website, September 2026. Call before a non-urgent visit; in an emergency call 911 or the hospital’s own emergency line above. Travel information, not medical advice.
The other 4 hospitals in Manila
- The Medical CityPrivate, about 800 beds, Ortigas Avenue, Pasig.
- Makati Medical CenterPrivate, about 600 beds, Amorsolo Street, Legaspi Village.
- St. Luke’s Medical Center — Global CityPrivate, about 600 beds, Rizal Drive, Bonifacio Global City.
- St. Luke’s Medical Center — Quezon CityPrivate, E. Rodriguez Sr. Avenue, near Cubao.