The benefit payouts of the Social Security System (SSS) increased by more than 30 percent to P127 billion as of the third quarter that executives traced to the release of the additional P1,000 in pensions for members promised earlier by President Duterte.
According to SSS President and CEO Emmanuel F. Dooc, the higher benefit payments compared with only P98.06 billion reported in the same period in 2016.
“The increase in benefit payouts was higher due to the release of the P1,000 additional benefit amounting to P24.03 billion from January to October 2017 and the third tranche of pension adjustments arising from the unlumping of 1985 to 1989 contributions amounting to P72.43 million,” Dooc said.
The third tranche of pension adjustments for retirees, death and disability pensioners prior to May 24, 1997, or the implementation of the Republic Act (RA) 8282, or the Social Security Law of 1997, was credited to accounts of qualified pensioners on June 29.
The first and second tranche of pension adjustments for retirees, death and disability pensioners, after the implementation of RA 8282, were already released last year.
Broken down, payments for retirement benefit increased by 26.75 percent to P73.65 billion; followed by death-benefit payouts with a 43.51-percent increase, to P40.17 billion; and disability-benefit payments with a 9.24-percent increase to P4.52 billion.
Disability, funeral and sickness-benefit expenditures also increased by 42.8 percent to P4.64 billion; 6.09 percent to P2.85 billion; and 8.47 percent to P1.95 billion, respectively.
Medical and rehabilitation services showed a contraction by 13.47 percent and 20.36 percent, to P9.7 million and P1.1 million, respectively.
SSS operating expenses also fell by 0.05 percent to P6.48 billion, bringing total expenditures over nine months to P134.26 billion, or 28.43 percent higher than the P104.54 billion in the same period a year earlier.
SSS total revenues at end-September jumped by 10.72 percent to P146.17 billion, from P131.97 billion in 2016.
Member contributions representing 81.8 percent of total revenues amounted to P119.5 billion, up 11.31 percent from P107.36 billion in 2016.
“The increase in our contribution was due to the aggressive contribution collection drive of SSS, like our recently launched Run After Contribution Evaders and linkages with various professional sectors,” he said.
According to Dooc, collections from the employed sector showed the largest haul of P103.1 billion, followed by voluntary paying members of P10.98 billion and the self-employed of another P5.42 billion.
Investment and other income over nine months representing 18.2 percent of total revenue was 8.16 percent higher to P26.62 billion, from 2016’s P24.61 billion.
Pension-fund assets total P511.72 billion, an expansion by 7.4 percent from P476.40 billion traced to the increase in investments and cash equivalents.
SSS’s investment reserve funds as of September stood at P490.32 billion, or 5.6 percent higher than the P464.42 billion recorded in 2016.
In January this year, President Duterte approved a P2,000 across-the-board pension hike for SSS members in two tranches at P1,000 per tranche.
Social Security Commission Chairman Amado D. Valdez said the first P1,000 took effect in January, while the second adjustment would be in 2022 or earlier.