Markus Castro
SSS Female members May Receive As High As Php70,000 SSS Maternity Benefits by January 2020
Manila, Philippines — Good news to members of the Social Security System (SSS): The government agency has recently announced that its SSS Female members can start receiving increased maternal benefits come 2020.
SSS announced that the present maternity financial assistance that members can receive — which is at Php 32,000 — will be doubled to a maximum of Php 70,000 starting January next year.
The said increase is aligned with the SSS Act of 2018, according to Aurora Ignacio, CEO and SSS President.
Under the said policy instrument, those members who pay the new maximum monthly salary credit — which is at Php 20,000 — are eligible to receive Php 70,000 financial assistance.
Ignacio went on to say that the agency was able to provide assistance to 122,000 female members who gave birth from January through April this year. This started back on March 11, 2019, when the RA 11210, or the law that provides 105 days expanded maternity leave, was signed.
Through the said law, according to Ignacio, mothers have been given a longer period for the recuperation. They have also benefited from a longer time to be with their children.
She also reminded those members, especially employers who managed to make advance contributions, to adjust their maternity benefit. Those eligible members have to provide proof of payment along with their request for adjustment. Further, they also need to submit a photocopy of solo parent ID if it applies to them.
She likewise shared that payment of differential will be made through checks or banks for voluntary members, self-employed, OFWs, and members who were separated from employment.
SSS has also shared that there was a significant 15.09 percent increase from the amount that they disbursed in maternity benefits from January through April 2019 as compared to the same period last year. In particular, the agency disbursed Php 2.67 billion within the said months as opposed to Php 2.32 billion in the same period last year.
In any case, this news is definitely good news to SSS members, especially to those who are going to give birth as they will have a longer time to be with their newborns and they will also enjoy increased benefits.
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Also read: New Working mothers in PH can now enjoy 105 days paid maternity leave
