ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Opinion devider Let's help ensure our seniors enjoy dignified life in their twilight years

Let's help ensure our seniors enjoy dignified life in their twilight years

Published May 30, 2024 04:46 pm

E CARTOON MAY 31, 2024.jpg

As our society ages, it becomes increasingly crucial to address the healthcare needs of senior citizens. These individuals have dedicated their productive years to building our nation, and now it’s our turn to give back. 


This is why the proposal in the House of Representatives to provide a health insurance program for senior citizens to pay for catastrophic health expenditures is a welcome development. It is widely known senior citizens often face significant financial strain due to healthcare costs. While the government provides some coverage for this age group, the prohibitive healthcare cost in the country makes this government’s assistance insufficient. Many seniors still end up paying a substantial portion of their hospital bills out-of-pocket. Catastrophic health expenditures—such as those related to cancer treatments and major hospitalizations—can devastate their already limited resources.


Albay Rep. Joey Salceda, the author of the measure, noted that a 2018 report by the Longitudinal Study of Ageing and Health in the Philippines (LSAHP) showed that the median reported individual or conjugal income for seniors is only ₱3,000 per month, with approximately 46 percent of senior citizens living below the poverty line. This condition should prompt the swift enactment of the House measure.


Salceda’s House Bill No. 52, the proposed PhilHealth Reform Act, aims to create a specialized health insurance program for senior citizens. This program would cover catastrophic health expenses on top of the existing government-sponsored coverage. 


Under this proposal, senior citizens will enjoy financial equity and thus enjoy a dignified old age as the additional insurance coverage can alleviate their financial strain and ensure they receive quality care to help them enjoy their golden years without worrying about medical bills.


The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) can play a pivotal role in implementing this proposed program. By utilizing new sin taxes, revenue growth from gaming corporations, and PhilHealth’s excess funds, the government can finance the gap in healthcare financing for seniors.


To make this program a reality, the government can redirect a portion of sin taxes from alcohol and tobacco products toward senior citizens’ health insurance. Allocating a share of the revenue generated by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Pagcor) to senior health insurance would be a meaningful investment, while utilizing PhilHealth’s excess funds will help ensure that seniors receive the care they deserve.


As a nation, we owe our senior citizens a debt of gratitude. Their contributions during their productive years have helped shape our society. So, it’s appropriate for the government to ensure that they receive the proper healthcare they deserve. Let’s honor our senior citizens with this catastrophic health insurance program as an act of compassion and justice to address the financial strain they face and enhance their access to quality healthcare.


By creating a specialized health insurance program, we can bridge the gap and ensure dignified old age for our seniors. For all their contributions to society during their productive years, our seniors deserve the best during their twilight years. Let’s give it to them.
 

Related Tags

EDITORIAL
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.