A hospital facility for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and a sovereign fund to help them manage their finances better might be in the works if all goes well in the scheduled meeting between Kabayan Party-list Rep. Ron Salo and Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) Secretary Susan “Toots” Ople.
During the Laging Handa public briefing on Monday, Aug. 22, Salo said that the official organizational meeting and briefing with the DMW will be held tomorrow, Aug. 23.
As the head of the House Committee on Overseas Workers Affairs, the lawmaker will lead the briefing, which will have in its agenda the proposal to build an OFW hospital, a special wing per hospital for OFWs and their dependents, and the sovereign fund intended especially for OFWs.
“But at the same time mahalaga na nagkaroon po ng ganito pagmi-meeting (it’s important to have this kind of meeting) with Secretary Toots Ople sapagkat mailatag din po natin ang mga focus natin (because we can lay down the things we're focusing on),” he said.
The country’s sole OFW hospital is currently in San Fernando, Pampanga. It was built only during the previous Duterte administration to provide medical care for Filipino migrant workers and their dependents.
The hospital offers a wide range of services, such as outpatient care, in-patient care, emergency care, and surgery.
A bill proposed during the previous 18th Congress, on the other hand, sought to create an OFW Sovereign Fund to encourage all OFWs to invest part of their income or cash remittances with the government through treasury bills or bonds.
The investment will ideally have a higher return, better tax incentives, and with lesser risks compared to regular banks.
Salo said that Ople will also share her agency’s concerns about the current negotiations with destination countries to ensure that OFWs are protected in their deployment.
READ: Ople: Exit strategy for every OFW needed to break inter-generational cycle of migrant workers
He also raised the workers’ concerns about their Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) premium contributions, which were hiked recently to fund the country’s Universal Health Care Program.
“But, of course, open po tayo, makikinig po tayo ano ‘yung pinakamagandang pamamaraan para ma-address po ‘yung (we are open, we are going to listen to the best way to address the) concerns ng mga (of the) OFWs related sa (to) premiums na binabayaran nila (that they pay),” the lawmaker said.
The meeting between Salo and Ople will be joined by representatives from the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), and the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA).
“Hopefully, ‘yung mga mga kababayan natin higit na ma-inform lalo ‘yung nagnanais po na mag-abroad ay kasalukuyan may kamag-anak na nasa abroad na patuloy nilang maintindihan kung ano yung ginagawang programa ng ating pamahalaan (our countrymen will be better informed especially those who want to go abroad and presently have relatives abroad so they can continuously understand the programs of the government),” Salo furthered.
He added that the meeting will also give Filipinos an idea of what they can do to access the programs provided by the government.