Senator Ramon Revilla Jr. announced on Tuesday that he filed a measure that seeks to reduce the qualifying age for senior citizens in the country.
Revilla said that the proposed measure will provide earlier benefits for the elders which call "the least, the lost, and the last."
In a statement, the lawmaker said that elders have struggled and worked hard their whole lives to sustain the needs of their families, noting that their contribution is incomparable in upholding society and the country.
According to the senator, many senior citizens did not reach the age of 60 when the pandemic hit the country.
Moreover, the Department of Health (DOH) provided the latest data in which 7.33% of coronavirus disease cases among Filipino senior citizens led to death as compared to 0.76% mortality among those between the ages 18 to 59.
Even with the existing laws that provide benefits to senior citizens, the Senate Bill (SB) No. 1572 filed by Revilla seeks to amend Republic Act (RA) No. 7432 defining a senior citizen as any resident citizen of the Philippines who is at least 60 years old.
Also, the senator filed SB 1558 eyeing to require establishments in providing priority seating for senior citizens including but not limited to, restaurants, libraries, recreational centers, and venue halls to reserve and designate the best possible seats and tables for senior citizens.
