SSS: Claims processing depends on applicants, too

THIS REFERS to the letter titled “SSS still to heed final and executory EC award” (Opinion, 7/27/15).

In her letter, Nida M. Divinagracia complained of the slow processing of the employees’ compensation death benefit of her late husband, Delfin G. Divinagracia. She noted that the Court of Appeals has already issued a decision that she is entitled to the EC death benefit as stated in CA-GR No. SP 124416 dated Feb. 14, 2012, and that the decision was due and demandable in August 2012.

She complained that she had made various follow-ups with SSS Tarlac branch but her

efforts have yielded no results. She added that she has been waiting for almost a year now with no end in sight to her problem.

We wish to inform Divinagracia that her EC death claim was already settled on July 21, 2015. The amount, representing her EC death pension from July 2007 up to September 2015, has been deposited to her bank account. Starting October 2015, she will be receiving a monthly pension amounting to P6,631.84.

Admittedly, there were delays in the processing of her EC claim due to the strict examination of information and documents pertaining to the death benefit.

Our processing center in Tarlac explained that the processing of her death claim was delayed after our processing center requested some clarifications about her savings account and the birthdate of Darren M. Divinagracia, a dependent of the deceased.

Inasmuch as we want to expedite it, the processing of benefit claims also depends on how prompt the claimants respond to our request for clarification and additional documents.

We want to give our assurance that we will continue to improve our processes so that we can better serve our members.

—MARISSU G. BUGANTE, vice president, Public Affairs and Special Events Division, Social Security System