GSIS pandemic response cited
The Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) was recently cited by the 2020 Stevie International Business Awards for having the “Most Valuable Government Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic” in the world.
Macasaet said the GSIS mobilized public service programs on radio, TV, online publications, social media and its SMS facility to communicate to its members and pensioners during the quarantine.
GSIS was the sole government agency to win the Gold Stevie award in this category, besting entries from the United States and Australia.
The Silver Stevie Award went to: the ICMA-RC in Washington D.C.; the City and County (LGU) of Denver, Colorado; and the
Australian Taxation Office in Canberra.
In its congratulatory letter, the Stevie Awards commended GSIS for “working valiantly over the past months to keep its members and pensioners safe, healthy and informed.”
As this developed, GSIS president and general manager Rolando Ledesma Macasaet expressedhisappreciationtotheStevieAwards for recognizing the state pension fund’s efforts during the pandemic.
“It is a great honor to be chosen as the government institution with the best government response to COVID-19 in the world. For that, I thank our GSIS employees for staying committed and focused on their work despite the fact that most of them are also affected by the crisis,” Macasaet said.
The judges in the international competition also noted that “GSIS was able to anticipate and work at alleviating the plight of government employees and retirees. The reassurance and support that GSIS provided to its members and pensioners was an inspiration, and the pension fund carried out a very good communications plan that kept members and pensioners informed of the services and benefits it was offering at the height of the crisis.”
Macasaet said the GSIS mobilized public service programs on radio, TV, online publications, social media and its SMS facility to communicate to its members and pensioners during the quarantine.
“I also thank our Board of Trustees, led by former chief justice Lucas Bersamin, for its guidance and support in our efforts to make GSIS more proactive and responsive to the needs of our members, especially our pensioners who are most vulnerable to COVID-19,” Macasaet said.
In line with its efforts to protect its members and pensioners from the virus and provide for the financial needs of its members during the crisis, GSIS introduced the online filing of loans, provided options for “contactless” filing of claims through mail or drop box, opened an Emergency Loan window with increased credit limit and relaxed payment terms, e-credited pensions ahead of the usual monthly schedule, suspended the yearly physical appearance requirement for pensioners, granted a four-month moratorium on loan payments, established a program granting a half-million peso insurance benefit to the families of medical front liners who died of COVID-19 and implemented strict social distancing and biosecurity measures in all its branches nationwide.