Brothers and sisters, if not for the response of many in social media, especially our fellow Filipinos working tire-lessly in foreign countries or the overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) premium they are required to pay would continue to rise.
According to the Universal Health Care Law, which Congress had prioritized and signed into law by President Duterte in February 2019, PhilHealth will obligate OFWs earning from P10,000 to P20,000 every month to pay the premium equal to 3 percent of their monthly wages. This means that, if the previous premium they had to pay every year was only around P2,400, this will inflate to around P21,600 every year! What is even worse is that those unable to pay their PhilHealth premium will not be given the Overseas Employment Contract by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration, a document they need to go abroad in order to work.
Bishop Ruperto Santos of the Diocese of Balanga, who is the vice chairman of the CBCP Episcopal Commission on Migrants and Itinerant People, is one of those concerned with this particular ruling of PhilHealth.
According to the Bishop, PhilHealth’s action shows its lack of compassion for the OFWs and will cause undue stress among our fellow Filipinos particularly in this time when most of them are under “no work, no pay” condition, including those who may lose their jobs because of the Covid-19 pandemic. The additional dues are a heavy burden for many of our fellowmen who are sacrificing a lot for the welfare of the economy.
After the negative reactions received by PhilHealth, President Duterte was forced not to follow the law that he himself signed. He ordered the suspension in the payment of higher premiums for the OFWs. Paying for the premiums would now be voluntary. Regardless, there are no clear guidelines whether or not the 3 percent contributions would stop now with the implementation of the Universal Health Care Law.
It is true that OFWs—hailed as our new heroes—greatly contribute to the country because of the dollars they earn that support the economy. From the Survey on Overseas Filipinos conducted by the Philippine Statistics Authority in 2018, the number of Filipinos working abroad has reached 2.3 million that year. In that same year, almost P236 billion in remittances have been recorded from our OFWs, a large amount to keep our economy afloat.
Because of this, many of us can’t stop thinking that with our millions of OFWs whose jobs are being threatened, the government must find ways to help them.
In their journey overseas, our OFWs are able to address God’s command. The book of Matthew 28:18-20 says: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Our OFWs do this by becoming good and excellent workers despite the sacrifices and loneliness away from their families. This is why PhilHealth’s move to increase their dues is unjust, an action not meant to support workers that have rights and dignity that must be protected, according to Pope Francis in his message for the World Day of Migrants in 2018. Pope Francis also said that this protection for migrant workers must come from where they are from.
Brothers and sisters, if the government truly gives importance to our “modern day heroes,” it must make ways to ease their burden, not add to the weight they are carrying.
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