Republic

Chamber of Representatives passes bill on adjusting the system of social security privileges

Today, at the second reading, the Chamber of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belarus (the lower chamber of the Belarusian parliament) has adopted the bill “On State Social Security Privileges, Regulations and Guarantees for Certain Categories of Citizens”. 100 deputies voted in favour of the bill; 1 voted against it. The bill changes the terms of providing privileges to certain categories of citizens in paying for utilities services, Vladimir Potupchik, the Minister of Labour and Social Security of Belarus, said. In particular, the following groups of citizens will be entitled to preferential tariffs on utilities services: the non-working military retirees; commanding officers and rank-and-file officers of the bodies of internal affairs, whose disablement is caused by wounds, concussion of the brain, injuries or illnesses suffered in the course of fulfilling their duties; citizens who suffered from the radiation sickness caused by the Chernobyl catastrophe. Entitled to the afore-mentioned privilege are also the invalids of the 1st and 2nd groups, except for those invalids whose disablement is caused by unlawful actions, alcoholic, narcotic or toxic intoxication, or mutilation. Those entitled to the privilege are supposed to have no able-bodied family members who, according to the law, are to support them. The bill specifies the groups of citizens who are entitled to the privilege of obtaining free medicine and having a 50% discount on utilities services. This privilege covers the following categories of citizens: the parents of the servicemen, partisans and undercover activists who were killed or died during the Great Patriotic War, of the servicemen who were killed when fulfilling their military or service duties outside Belarus, of the servicemen, commanding officers and rank-and-file officers of the bodies of internal affairs who were killed (died) when fulfilling their military (service) duties. The adjustment of the system of social security privileges will allow to bring the laws on social security privileges in conformity with the economic and financial possibilities of Belarus, to solve the problem of the insufficiency of budget financing and address the issue of the ungrounded discrepancies in social support for the invalids suffering from various diseases, Vladimir Potupchik said. According to him, the adoption of the bill will allow to economise over Br168 billion and create conditions for the efficient redistribution of this money so that it can be used to provide effective support for those who need it. Moreover, this money will be funnelled into state programmes aimed at increasing the birth rate and addressing the Chernobyl challenges.