DSWD supports congressmen's move to abolish senior citizen purchase booklet

The Department of Social Welfare and Development on Friday said it support the move by two congressmen for the abolition of the senior citizen’s purchase slip booklet following numerous complaints coming from the elderly.

“In previous years, the department received various concerns and complaints through various means of communication, relative to the availment of senior citizen discounts. A total of 24 complaints were received in 2022 and 2023,” DSWD Assistant Secretary for Strategic Communications Romel Lopez said.

ACT-CIS Party-list Rep. Erwin Tulfo, a former DSWD secretary, and Marikina Rep. Stella Quimbo have moved for the abolition of the purchase slip booklet for senior citizens based on the initial findings of their congressional inquiry early this week.

"We support the position of Representatives Tulfo and Quimbo to do away with the senior citizen booklet," DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian said.

Gatchalian said the DSWD will take the lead in reaching out to the Department of Health (DOH) and other concerned agencies to commence the operationalization of the booklet's abolition.

The DSWD chief has directed the agency’s Program Management Bureau (PMB) to make a study and recommendation regarding the Senior Citizen purchase slip booklet which has been the subject of a Congressional inquiry.

DSWD-PMB’s position paper dated 1 February 2024 recommended to Secretary Gatchalian the abolition of the purchase slip booklet as requirement for the purchase of medicines by senior citizens.

The DSWD-PMB recommended the adoption of digitized records for the Senior Citizens “considering the mobility and tendency to forget to bring their booklets and even read their content, it is no longer convenient on the part of senior citizens to use purchase slip booklets.”

“With the fast-paced technology and innovations, it is recommended to adopt an established system for monitoring, storing, and reporting data towards an efficient, consistent, and uniform implementation of the law and provisions for the availment of medicines, basic necessities, and prime commodities, among others,” the PMB said in its position paper.

The PMB maintained that in this digitalization, the concerned agencies such as the National Commission of Senior Citizens (NCSC), Department of Information and Communication Technology (DICT), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Health (DOH), Bureau of Internal revenue (BIR), and the Department of Justice (DOJ), and representation from non-government organizations (NGOs), shall partner with members of the private sector offering services to senior citizens.

The creation of the National Commission of Senior Citizens in 2019 by virtue of RA 11350 abolished the National Coordinating and Monitoring Board (NCMB), which was formerly chaired by the DSWD with member agencies primarily tasked to monitor the uniform implementation of Republic Act No. 9994, or the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010.

“The NCSC must conduct an immediate policy review accompanied by the issuance of guidelines that outline the benefits of abolishing the use of a physical booklet system, data sharing mechanisms of pharmacies and/or other relevant stakeholders nationwide, and the integration of the PhilSys ID system. The call for policy review will ensure the government’s commitment to delivering improved services to our senior citizens, embracing new technological advancements, and fostering more integrated and efficient government services,” the DSWD-PMB said.

The Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010 (RA 9994) provides for the grant of privileges to Senior Citizens, including 20 percent discount and exemption from the value-added tax in the sale of specific goods and services from all establishment that is for the exclusive use and enjoyment of the senior citizen.

Although RA 9994 did not have a provision mandating the use of purchase slip booklet, the Department of Health (DOH), came out with Administrative Order (AO) No. 2010-0032 and Administrative Order (AO) 2012-0007 that required Senior Citizens to present a purchase slip booklet to all hospitals and drug retail outlets.

The DOH directed that “all hospitals and drug retail outlets shall require Senior Citizens or their representative to present the purchase slip booklets to record the kind of over-the-counter medicine purchased, how many, when and where it was purchased. “

The main purpose of the purchase slip booklets, according to DOH, is to help the drugstores to monitor the last purchase made by senior citizens for a certain medicine.

Because of the DOH issuances, Congressman Mark Go filed House Resolution No. 1263 calling for a stop on the implementation of the purchase slip booklet as a mandatory requirement in the purchase of medicines and goods by senior citizens.

On 24 October 2023, the DSWD issued a letter addressed to DOH stating its support for the removal of the purchase slip booklet and welcomed any potential modification that will streamline the requirements, provided that the monitoring of purchases is ensured pending the digitalization.