OFWs in Hong Kong stage protest vs. hike in PhilHealth premiums

Overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Hong Kong have staged a protest against the increase in mandatory premium payments made to the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth).

According to a report on GMA's "24 Oras Weekend" on Sunday, OFWs in Hong Kong are protesting the state insurer's hiking the premium to 3.0% of their monthly salary starting this year, an increase from 2.75% in 2019.

"Hindi po 'yan simpleng halaga. Ang sampung libo, ang dalawampung libo, napakahalaking halaga po 'yan para itutulong natin sa ating pamilya na naghihirap, kukunin pa sa'tin, sisingilin pa tayo, na hindi naman natin mapapakinabangan," one of the protesters said in the report.

"'Pag tayo naman ay naospital dito sa Hong Kong, hindi naman po PhilHealth ang ginagamit natin. Tayo po ay pupunta sa mga ospital dito, may mga ID tayo, at tayo ay mabibigyan ng serbisyo," she elaborated.

PhilHealth last week said that the increase covers OFWs whose monthly incomes range from P10,000 to P60,000.

An online petition on Change.org has since been mounted to repeal the measure, given the global health crisis caused by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

"I believe that we OFWs and our dependents have been already struggling amidst this pandemic and yet PhilHealth had issued a very unfair memo regarding premium payments," the petition read.

"I believe that this is already too much of them to ask for an interest rate and a penalty which is very unfair and inhumane for those who travel away from their families to work," it added.

PhilHealth is a tax-exempt government corporation attached to the Department of Health (DOH) mandated to administer the National Health Insurance Program which provides health care services to all Philippine citizens.

"It is very unfortunate that they call OFWs modern heroes and yet they penalize us with such directives. We urge the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (Philhealth) to reverse this directive as this is unfair and an abuse to our migrant workers," the petition read.

GMA News Online has repeatedly reached out to PhilHealth president and chief executive officer Ricardo Morales for comment on the matter, but no response has been received as of this posting.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro "Teddy Boy" Locsin Jr. disagreed with the increase, saying that OFWs should be "left alone." — Jon Viktor D. Cabuenas/BM, GMA News