President Lee Jae-myung has announced his plan to reform the basic pension payment system to solve the poverty problem for the elderly.
President Lee said in a message on social media on the 16th that the current basic pension reduction system is unfairly disadvantageous to married couples, defining it as an unreasonable measure due to lack of finances and clarifying his willingness to correct it.
President Lee especially emphasized that the root cause of the nation's severe elderly suicide rate lies in economic poverty.
"Now, we can pay the poor a little more generously," he suggested, pointing to the structure in which the elderly with millions of won in monthly income and those without any income receive the same basic pension.
As a specific direction of reorganization, the principle of 'Hahoo Sang-bak' was proposed.
The plan is to leave the current basic pension amount as it is, but design it so that if the budget increases in the future, more increases will be given to the elderly with low incomes.
This is interpreted as a strategy to increase the effectiveness of the policy by focusing support on the vulnerable, who are relatively underprivileged while maintaining a universal welfare framework.
President Lee started publicizing the proposal, asking, "What do you think?"
This message is expected to add significant momentum to the government's pension reform discussions in the future, coupled with the recent plan to reduce the basic pension couple's reduction.
The government has decided to gradually reduce the reduction rate of low-income elderly couples receiving basic pensions from 2027.
The current couple reduction system is a method of reducing 20% from each pension amount in consideration of the cost reduction effect of communal living if all couples in the bottom 70% of income among the elderly aged 65 or older receive pensions.
According to the government's plan, the reduction rate, which is currently 20% for elderly couples in the bottom 40% of income, will be gradually reduced to 15% by 2027 and 10% by 2030.
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Jeong Ji-yong (zerobase@ikbc.co.kr )
It is important for society to move in a slightly better direction.
A little more patience for immediate satisfaction will further empower the current government's policies.