This is a proposal that is receiving much consensus, because it helps eliminate a regulation that is causing many elderly people to repeat the same administrative procedure, while their needs and authorization content have not changed.
The regulation that powers of attorney are only valid for one year is set out with the goal of serving management work. However, after a period of implementation, the social insurance agency itself and many localities have reflected the arising inadequacies.
Most pensioners are elderly people. Many people have deteriorated health, suffer from chronic diseases, have difficulty walking or have to lie in one place. They are forced to ask their children or relatives to receive pensions instead through a power of attorney.
But every 12 months, they have to spend a lot of effort and time to redo the power of attorney, even though the person authorized is still the old one, the circumstances have not changed and their wishes have not changed.
This leads to a reality, for example, in Hanoi, to date, there are still about 17,000/120,000 cases that have to re-implement authorization and cannot complete procedures.
It is worth noting that many localities have proactively supported people to redo their power of attorney. Hanoi has established public administrative teams to directly serve the elderly and vulnerable at home.
That is a very commendable effort. But from that reality, it also raises the issue that a regulation that makes both people and the administrative apparatus have to spend a lot more time, manpower and costs to implement is the time to consider adjustment.
Another issue is that in the current context, the management of social insurance beneficiaries is no longer based solely on paperwork, because the national database on population, civil status data and social insurance data are gradually being connected.
Currently, information is fully updated and interconnected, the insurance agency can completely monitor the fluctuations of beneficiaries through data, instead of requiring them to periodically redo the same power of attorney.
Of course, removing the 12-month limit does not mean loosening management. Insurance agencies still have to regularly review data, verify when there are signs of abnormalities, and strictly handle acts of abusing powers of attorney for personal gain. And that is the responsibility of management agencies.
So that people do not have to spend time and effort doing unnecessary procedures is a very important part of administrative reform, in parallel with shortening the time to process dossiers.
For the elderly, the Ministry of Home Affairs' proposal will help the elderly reduce a part of the burden and have more practical care.
