OFWs will pay 150% more on PhilHealth premiums

PhilHealth announced that OFWs (Overseas Filipino Workers) will pay P2400 from the P900 premium effective July 2012. You can read more on this here. This move, according to the Economic scholars and bright minds in Philhealth who just recently discovered a scam after P100M have already been diverted from member contributions, is to help achieve the Millennium Development Goals by 2015 and the government’s Universal Health Care. Why they government wants to mess with the health of the universe is beyond me.

This is the kind of asshole-ry from the government that makes Filipinos want to shove their hands inside their noses and claw their brains out. OFWs are already the top contributors to the Gross National Product, followed by workers from BPO (Business Process outsourcing or call centers). OFWs drive the economy of this country by working abroad because this wonderland of amazing leaders cannot attract enough investors or encourage enough citizens to put up businesses here. Most OFWs are domestic helpers – cleaning, taking care, and serving the needs of people who can pay them a higher salary. They sacrifice enough, in fact they already sacrifice too much. But their sacrifice is what propels this country. Their sacrifice is what helps this country function. And they want more.

This is another one of those socialist and populist move to redistribute wealth. The magnificent ideologues at PhilHealth want to milk OFWs like a hungry infant to the last drop of peso they can cough up to subsidize losses. Why should the working class continue to take the entire economy in amusing piggy back rides? The working class – collectively is a force to reckon with. But individually, they do not earn much. Many PhilHealth members are young single professionals who have few to none people they can declare as dependents. This means, chances are, they do not get the maximum benefit they can from paying PhilHealth premiums.

My father is an OFW; so will I be in a few weeks. What these monkeys in Barongs need to understand is that they cannot rationalize a 150% hike in premiums with achieving the Millennium Development Goals. We are so far from achieving them – chances are, we won’t be able to reach those goals by 2015. If they want to gamble on it, gamble their own money. If we don’t achieve the goals by 2015, can we ask to refund the premiums? No. Can we prosecute them? No. Can we hold them accountable? No. So leave our money alone.

Our government needs to learn fiscal responsibility. What the working class do is live within our means. We cannot spend money we do not have. We cannot purchase things that we cannot afford. If our government cannot afford Universal Health Care or achieve the Millennium Development Goals on its own money, OFWs should not take the burden.

We have to live within the means with which we worked and toiled for. Why can’t the government do the same?