CSS: the only consensus is that we must act

After almost 20 years since the last social security reform in Panama, the message from the actors involved is clear: We should no longer waste time doing nothing.

“We cannot continue with this policy of blaming the problem on the government, which continues to talk about the alleged political price,” said Aida Ureña de Maduro, the representative of the business sector on the board of the Social Security Fund (CSS).

For her, who chaired the board of directors of that institution, there is no political price if, precisely, governments are obliged to citizens.

In the last days of 2005, the pension program in Panama changed with the creation of two systems, one of which is retained, which is defined benefit or pay-as-you-go.

Without a financial cushion, this component is in a serious situation where CSS may run out of funds to pay current retirees.

During the government of Laurentino Cortiz, a dialogue was promoted that the only thing that worked was updating the available information on CSS finances.

Cortizo has said from the beginning that he will accept any solution that does not include parametric measures, those related to the structural scheme of the pension program, such as the retirement age, the number of pension contributions and contributions paid by contributors.’

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thousands of pensioners and pensioners, the primary goal of the changes to the law on DSS.

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contributions or months of work are required as a minimum for the insured person to retire.

“After a systematic request by the private sector to solve this problem more than 10 years ago, today we are faced with a problem and there is no time left, we have to solve it,” he said.

The dialogue for HSS also allowed us to find out the views of both businessmen and workers about what would be a solution for the system.

The businessman’s proposal is known as the “Three Pillars”.

One would be support, for people who did not have the opportunity to contribute; The second is individual accounts, which currently exist, and the third pillar would be voluntary and would include people who are informal.

The workers, for their part, will insist on the approval of project 748, which they presented in the Assembly at the end of 2021, and which proposes a return to the system of solidarity or distribution, which is a situation that is not shared by the employers.

Nelva Reyes of the National Council of Organized Workers (Conato) said her initiative is comprehensive as it applies to the entire healthcare system.

He also has an economic proposal that we believe can respond to the situations happening in HSS, he added.

Faced with opposition from the business sector, Reyes pointed out that Panamanians are the ones who must decide which model to support.

Structural reform

Both workers and employers recognize that in addition to the pension program, the Social Security Fund needs a comprehensive change.

“We demand the reform of Law 51 to completely restructure the CSS and really put it into production and provide all the insured with the services they need,” said Aida de Maduro.

At the same time, Antonio Fletcher pointed out that the most important thing is the internal transformation of the HSS, with administrative elements, procedures, changes in the procurement of medicines and other situations that must be corrected in parallel with the pension reform process.