The Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) president will go on self-quarantine after an employee of the institution tested positive for coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).
In a statement, GSIS President and General Manager Rolando L. Macasaet said he had close physical contact with several of the individuals listed by the Covid-19 positive employee she had contact with.
Macasaet said the list is part of the GSIS contact-tracing process. The list of persons include those the employee had physical contact between March 7 to 11.
“The female employee had a travel history to Japan and she started manifesting symptoms on March 7. She was admitted at the San Juan de Dios Hospital on March 11, where lab tests subsequently showed that she was indeed positive for the Covid-19 virus,” Macasaet said.
“I feel well and am not showing symptoms. But just as a precautionary measure, I had myself tested for Covid-19 and, while waiting for the results, I am placing myself on self-quarantine for the time being,” he added.
The GSIS president declined to reveal the identity of the subject employee, citing privacy and security reasons.
Macasaet added that, in light of these developments, the GSIS headquarters in Pasay as well as its branches in Quezon City, Cagayan de Oro, Tagum and Iligan will be closed to the public.
He said the GSIS building in Pasay City wil be on lockdown until April 15. The GSIS Management also announced that its Mindanao Avenue, Quezon City, branch will be closed to the public for the same 30-day period.
Despite the lockdown, the GSIS Head Office in Pasay and its branch in Quezon City will continue to operate and will be manned by a skeletal workforce on rotational duty, Macasaet said.
Entry to the said offices, however, will be highly restricted and limited only to GSIS members with Unified Multi-Purpose ID cards who want to avail of loans through the wireless automated processing system, or Waps, kiosk.
Also allowed to enter are GSIS members who need to pick-up their Financial Assistance Loan (FAL) top-up checks and private lending institutions who need to pick-up their FAL checks.
The work suspension in Cagayan de Oro and Iligan City was implemented after several employees experienced symptoms. The said employees are currently waiting for their lab test results.
Macasaet, however, said other GSIS branch offices and extension offices nationwide remain open to the public.
Meanwhile, in order to eliminate the need for Agency Authorized Officers (AAOs) and Liaison Officers (LOs) to go to GSIS, applications for retirement/separation benefits, life insurance claims and over-the-counter loan applications may be submitted through designated drop boxes in the pension fund’s central office or via email to their membership coordinator.
The GSIS said its Operations Group is currently coordinating the details of this interim measure to the various AAOs and LOs of government agencies.
Old-age pensioners who are experiencing problems accessing their pensions should report their concerns via the GSIS contact center.
Macasaet further emphasized that GSIS has an existing “file anywhere” policy.
“Government agencies based in Quezon City can submit their claims to GSIS Bulacan, and GSIS Bulacan will be able to process their claims,” he was quoted in the statement as saying.
“Individual members can also apply for a loan in any of our branches or Waps kiosks nearest them. Almost all of our systems and processes in GSIS are automated and computerized, and this allows us to provide our pensioners and members ‘anytime-anywhere’ access to our services,” he added.
“I would like to assure the public that GSIS has a BCP [business continuity plan] in place, and that our financial services will continue to flow unimpeded to our pensioners and members,” Macasaet stressed.
The BCP, developed by the GSIS’s Risk Management Office, comprises pre-arranged action plans and standard operating procedures for GSIS personnel to follow in times of natural calamities, man-made disasters and medical contingencies such as viral outbreaks.
The state pension fund regularly conducts drills and seminars to train its personnel how to deal with various scenarios and crisis events, according to Macasaet.