MANILA, 17 January 2004 — A loose group of Filipino professionals in Saudi Arabia are pushing for a comprehensive social security insurance system for all Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs), which would include an expanded medical care and a pension plan.
Sam De los Santos, a financial manager in Jeddah and one of those drafting the plan, said the main aim of the program, is to make life easier for Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW) when they retire. “If our government officials want to come up with a more sensible reintegration program for OFWs, they should look into this,” said De los Santos, who is also the president of the Jeddah-based community group Alyansa.
Coming after the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) — without conducting consultations with OFW or advocacy groups — reduced the coverage of its health care program for OFWs, the plan being pushed would be in the form of a legislation.
De los Santos said OFWs are hailed by Philippine political leaders as “modern-day heroes” because their remittances, estimated to have reached US$7 billion in 2003, play a significant part in shoring up the national economy.
Despite the pain of separation, discrimination, as well as maltreatment and abuses, that OFWs have to endure, they continue to persevere for lack of income opportunities at home, he said.
De los Santos said, however, that the sad truth is that many of these “modern-day heroes” could become liabilities to their families and to the country when they retire, unless something is done urgently.
Some of them may have owned a house, sent their children to school and probably have savings and investment that could take care of their retirement.
The vast majority, however, would go home penniless because their earnings abroad have been all spent for the basic needs of their families, he explained.
To address this problem, which is actually affecting tens of thousands of OFWs who have gone home for good, the proposal is for the government to provide an effective and efficient social security insurance system or SSIS, exclusively for the OFWs.
As envisioned, the SSIS will be responsible for providing an expanded medical care program that would cover the retirees and their spouses, as well as insurance and pension plans for all OFWs.
The SSIS is to be created through legislation and the initial capital fund is to come from the capital fund of OWWA, which was built by the OFWs themselves. Upon enactment of the SSIS into law, collection of theUS$25 OWWA membership fee and the medicare premium of 900 pesos will be transferred to SSIS.
Its operating expenses will come from the operating revenues, such as investments, and not from the contributions of its members.
The other salient features:
• Under the proposed medical care program, an OFW who reaches the age of 55 would be eligible for a “free medicare coverage” for a minimum amount of 25,000 pesos annually for the rest of his/her life.
• In the pension plan, the OFW member will receive a minimum lump sum amount of 50,000 pesos at the age of 60. The member will have an option to receive the pension on monthly basis.
• Members will be covered by insurance during their lifetime.
• The SSIS will continue extending personal, housing and livelihood loans under a “Loan Guarantee Agreement” with financial institutions.
