The Provincial Government of Cebu is looking at the possibility of having Provincial Board (PB) members to sit as Board of Directors of the Capitol’s novel insurance coverage program called Sugbo Segurado.
This came out as one of the discussions raised by Gov. Gwen Garcia during a lunch meeting with Vice Gov. Hilario Davide III and members of the legislative body at her office on Wednesday, April 3.
If this pushes through without violating insurance laws, PB Members who will sit as BOD shall serve without monetary consideration or perks, pursuant to the Constitutional ban on double compensation of government workers and officials.
Earlier, the Insurance Commission Cebu District Office, headed by Atty. Terence Vanessa Tomol, pledged its full support to the program which she noted is the first social insurance program in the country pioneered by a local government unit.
Under the program, the Capitol intends provide to Life Insurance, Non-Life Insurance, and Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) coverage to its beneficiaries which include all the elected government officials from the provincial government, including all the elected officials of the component cities and municipalities, as well as all the elected and appointed officials of all the barangays of the province.
It will also be extended to Capitol employees, appointed and volunteer barangay workers, DepEd Cebu’s teaching and non-teaching personnel, presidents of all Parent-Teacher Associations in DepEd Cebu, as well as canyoneering guides in Badian and Alegria.
The non-life insurance will cover Capitol properties such as buildings, medical facilities, service vehicles, and the like.
It can be recalled that the Capitol decided to venture into self-insurance after Gov. Garcia realized that the Capitol’s current insurance arrangement resulted in disproportionately low claims as compared to high premiums paid by the province. | BJR