Draft bill 85.

Summary.

The draft bill seeks to recognize and compensate survivors of the June 2013 poisoning caused by heparin containing benzyl alcohol. To that end, it proposes increasing their special lifetime pension and designating the measure as a matter of social interest. Its opening article proposes retroactive recognition of the pension from June 2013 through October 2015, the month in which, according to the text itself, the law establishing this benefit was promulgated.

By amending Article 2 of Law 64 of October 22, 2015, the draft bill provides that the special lifetime pension is strictly personal, is a matter of social interest, and is granted without prejudice to other acquired rights. The proposed article gives it retroactive effect as of the law’s promulgation date. It also provides that the pension would not be subject to charges, attachment, withholding, or deductions of any kind. Beneficiaries could receive it alongside pensions or retirement benefits granted by the Social Security Fund (Caja de Seguro Social), without either benefit excluding the other.

The amendment to Article 3 of Law 64 of October 22, 2015 distinguishes between 2 groups of beneficiaries and sets the monthly amount for each. For parents of newborns who died from acute poisoning caused by heparin containing benzyl alcohol, it proposes a lifetime pension of 600 balboas (B/. 600.00). For survivors, it proposes a monthly pension of 1,000 balboas (B/. 1,000.00). The amount proposed for a survivor therefore differs from that assigned to the parents of a newborn who died from the poisoning.

The proposed addition of Article 3-A to Law 6;4 of October 22, 2015 addresses the death of a survivor who was receiving the pension. In that event, the benefit would be adjusted to 600 balboas per month for the survivor’s parents or those who exercised parental authority, guardianship, or legal representation. The adjustment would take effect in the third month following the surviving beneficiary’s death, subject to documentary verification. The draft bill provides that the law would take effect on the day after its promulgation.

Given its content, the draft bill concerns the Social Security Fund, survivors of the poisoning, parents of newborns who died, and those who exercised parental authority, guardianship, or legal representation. It may also be of interest to the health and social security sectors because of its provisions on beneficiaries, amounts, and the concurrent receipt of benefits.