Sen. Binay wants govt to shoulder cremation costs for COVID-19 deaths

Senator Nancy Binay urged the government to shoulder cremation costs for COVID-19 fatalities to help hospitals manage unclaimed cadavers and ease the financial burden on grieving families.

She highlighted that the high cost of cremation is a significant reason why many bodies remain unclaimed at hospitals like East Avenue Medical Center, where bodies were reported to have piled up.

Binay proposed that the government, specifically the Department of Health (DOH) and the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), should facilitate agreements with mortuary stakeholders for the safe processing of deceased individuals.

She expressed disappointment over the delayed response from government agencies in studying the management and disposal of COVID-19 cadavers.

Binay also suggested that the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) could increase its funeral assistance for COVID-19 victim families from P10,000.

The DOH stated that the issue of cadavers has been resolved and coordination is being made with the DILG, MMDA, and LGUs to prevent future occurrences.