The City Government of Muntinlupa, headed by Mayor Ruffy Biazon, distributes the centenarian cash gift to eligible residents last July 2023. (Photo Courtesy: Muntinlupa PIO) 

QUEZON CITY, (PIA) -- The Senate of the Philippines approved on third and final reading Senate Bill No. (SBN) 2028 which seeks to expand the coverage of the Centenarians Act of 2016, granting additional benefits and privileges to Filipino senior citizens. 

Under the SBN 2028, senior citizens are entitled to receive a financial grant amounting to P10,000 upon reaching the age of 80 years old and P20,000 upon reaching 90 years old. 

The said provision adds to the separate P100,000 centenarian cash gift that they will receive upon reaching 100 years old as stipulated in Republic Act No. 10868 or the Centenarians Act of 2016. 

The initiative of the Senate to render its approval of the SBN 2028 is primarily based on the data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), stating that about 10 percent or 790,000  of the 7.5 million recorded population of senior citizens in 2015 are aged 80 to 90 years old. 

The sponsor of the bill, Senator Imee Marcos, also indicated that the average life expectancy among Filipino senior citizens is pegged at 79 years old for men and 83 years for women. 

Accordingly, most of the elderly population are unable to tend to their basic needs due to the lack of old-age income and the insufficiency of social pension. 

"The rising cost of living and healthcare expenses has made it very difficult for our senior citizens to afford basic necessities...it is hoped that more of our elderly population may be able to benefit from the Centenarians Act and that they may be inspired to further prolong and enjoy their lives even beyond a century," said Senator Marcos. 

In effect, the Senate concurred that in order to advance the cause of senior citizens, it is only justifiable to grant them governmental benefits and privileges without necessarily waiting to reach the centenarian age. 

“Living to reach eighty, ninety, or even a hundred years has become a rarity, thus not too many Filipinos enjoy the benefits afforded by the Act Recognizing The Octogenarians, Nonagenarians, and Centenarians,” said Senator Win Gatchalian, one of the co-authors of the bill. 

The proposed bill likewise stipulates that the stated amounts of the financial grants are subject to change after one year from the effectivity of the law depending on the average annual inflation rate. The said adjustments will be determined by the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA). 

The PSA will also work closely with the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) for the establishment of a data management system that will be utilized to identify and integrate the relevant information of the eligible population. (PIA-NCR)