Labor group urges President Marcos to defer anew PhilHealth premium hike amid economic struggles, lack of wage increase in 2024

Philippines Graphic
By Philippines Graphic
Screen Shot 2024 01 15 At 8.01.15 Am

Share

The Federation of Free Workers (FFW) made an urgent appeal to President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, Jr. to defer once again the implementation of higher rate premiums for Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) contributions for 2024.

“The low wages of workers have made it very difficult to cope with high inflation. Workers are still lobbying Congress for the proposed legislated P150 daily wage increase, across the board,” the FFW said.

Compounding the economic difficulties, the labor group said, are “the recent hikes in contributions for Pag-IBIG, including LRT fare increases, and rising water rates. Amid these economic challenges, an increase in PhilHealth premiums would add to the burden of Filipino workers.”

Given that the Universal Health Act is still under review by Congress, the FFW argued for a more considerate approach to the premium hike at PhilHealth. It suggested that with its substantial accumulated funds, PhilHealth could potentially sustain itself even without the premium collection for some time.

This year’s proposed increase will see the premium rate go up to 5%, with the monthly basic salary ceiling increasing to P100,000.

The FFW underscored the significant economic pressure already faced by Filipino workers. “With the pending review of the PhilHealth law, considerations for optional OFW coverage, and the need for workers’ representation on the PhilHealth board, re-evaluating the timing of the hike is crucial.”

The FFW called for a balanced approach that takes into account the current economic realities faced by Filipino workers. “We urge President Marcos and the Philhealth Board to defer the PhilHealth premium hike for the time being.”

Website

Started in 1927, the Philippines Graphic is the longest-running printed magazine of national circulation that provides relevant news and features and promotes Philippine literature.

Table of contents [hide]

Read More

Cover

The peso paradox: Why more financially literate Filipinos are still struggling to build wealth

Malou Talosig-Bartolome -
On a payday morning somewhere in Bulacan, a mother walks into a sari-sari store clutching a handful of coins. She asks for a sachet of shampoo, P10-worth of cooking oil, and a...
Cover

Joaquin: In the nick of time

Psyche Roxas-Mendoza -
The country’s best writers and cultural institutions paid homage this year to the 100th anniversary of the late National Artist Nick Joaquin. Ironically, had Joaquin been around, he might never have allowed the tributes and accolades given in his honor. Or maybe, he would, but at great discomfort. Said writer Jose ‘Pete’ Lacaba, “Sinasabi sa amin ni Nick pag dumadalaw kami sa mga burol ‘ayaw ko ng mga tribute-tribute. Ibalot niyo na lang ako sa banig, itapon niyo ako sa Pasig River.’ Pero tinatanggap din naman niya pag binigyan siya ng award [Nick would tell us whenever we were in a wake, ‘I don’t like tributes. Just wrap me in a mat and throw me in the Pasig River. But he still would accept every time he is given an award].”
Cover

The World in the time of Nick Joaquin

Psyche Roxas-Mendoza -
Europe, the seat of everything that was grand, powerful, and prosperous, was caught in the teeth of the First World War, the year Nicomedes Márquez Joaquín was born on May 4, 1917. It was half a world away from a boy who would emerge half a century later as one of the greatest literary minds in a poor and exploited country still caught in its own, long drawn-out war of independence in 1917.
Cover

They who wrote for the Philippines Graphic

Graphic Editorial -
“Our sense ... of our country is a sustained act of imagination. From that vantage, it can be said that our writers and artists, who are men and women of imagination, create our country (italics mine). That is to say: they evoke those images of ourselves as we live life day and night, those images of ourselves which we share and by which we recognize our nativity. We are our own best interpreters of our history and culture because it is we who have lived through that history and created our own values by which we live.” —National Artist for Literature Gemino Abad