As the nation is about to observe All Saints’ and Souls’ Days, Cebu Rep. Vincent “Duke” Frasco has pushed the passage of a measure seeking to set a price ceiling of P12,000 for caskets to benefit indigent families.
The chairperson of the House Committee on Visayas Development said there is a need to regulate the funeral industry to ensure availability of affordable decent caskets to grief-stricken and extremely poor families.
"House Bill 7846 compassionately eases the financial burdens of grieving indigent Filipinos. When this bill becomes law, funeral parlors are required to make available for poverty-stricken families caskets worth P12,000 or less,” he said.
Last Oct. 8, Frasco filed HB No. 7846 or the proposed "Dignified Casket (DC) Cares Act,” lamenting that the price of most caskets has become "unconscionably high," which is beyond the paying capacity of the extremely poor Filipino households.
"HB 7846 seeks to regulate the funeral industry to widen their product range and rationalize their price range for caskets,” Frasco said.
According to him, if passed into law, his bill will "positively impact millions of low-income Filipino households burdened by exorbitant casket prices when a family member passes on.”
"This bill indirectly creates the product-price category of caskets for indigents. As long as the caskets offered are still of good quality while also being affordable, then the casket makers and funeral parlors will still be able to make a reasonable profit while serving well their indigent clientele,” he said.