Free, discounted funeral services for indigents bill refiled

MANILA, Philippines —  A bill seeking to grant a 50 percent discount on funeral services to indigent Filipinos and free funeral services to extremely poor families has been refiled at the House of Representatives.

House Bill No. 5249 or the proposed “Funeral Services Discount Act” is aimed at extending free funeral services to extremely poor families.

Bayan Muna Reps. Carlos Zarate, Eufemia Cullamat and Ferdinand Gaite refiled the bill last Oct. 23.

The bill also grants a 50 percent discount on funeral services to indigent families by funeral homes anywhere in the country but would only be applicable to at-need funeral services.

The measure defines indigent families as those whose monthly incomes are equivalent to the minimum wage set in the region where they reside, while extremely poor refers to a family whose monthly income is less than the minimum wage set in the region where they reside.

The following requirements should be submitted to avail of the discounts: death certificate, funeral contract and a certificate as indigent or extremely poor beneficiary from the barangay or the local social welfare offices of the local government units or from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) regional or national offices stating that the beneficiary belongs to extremely poor or indigent families.

Meanwhile, funeral homes granting discounts or free services to beneficiaries may reimburse the cost of the discount from any regional offices of the DSWD, according to the bill.

The Bayan Muna representatives said this measure “aims to provide immediate relief to the poor, especially during the loss of their loved ones.”

The progressive lawmakers also cited a survey done on funeral services by the UP School of Urban and Regional Planning in 2005 which revealed that the average funeral service package was P25,000 while memorial lots in public and private cemeteries costs an average of P50,000 for lot package, including succeeding lease payments.

“In the Philippines, dying has become as costly as living itself. This is because most Filipinos already live lives of utter poverty and still die poor and indebted till the end,” the lawmakers lamented.

“Funeral services generally are expensive, a stark and difficult reality confronting the large majority of impoverished Filipinos,” they added.

The bill was tackled in a technical working group during the previous 17th Congress but failed to get the lower chamber’s approval.

The proposed law could be referred to the appropriate House committee once the chamber resumes session on November 4. /gsg