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Luida Dela Cruz at the hospital
Photo courtesy of Manila Tel Aviv

Foreign worker's body stranded in Israel

Filipino woman works in Israel for five years before being diagnosed with acute Leukemia. Due to lack of medical insurance, her remains cannot be flown back to Philippines

About three weeks before her death, 45-year-old Philippines resident Luida Dela Cruz was still working at the home of the family which had employed her for the past five years. That was when she began feeling weak and dizzy.

 

After being rushed to Hasharon Hospital in Petah Tikva, Luida was diagnosed with acute Leukemia.

 

The woman was treated at the hospital despite the fact that she did not have medical insurance, but died several days later. Her body is still in Israel, as there is no one to finance its transfer to the Philippines.

 

The Embassy of the Philippines in Israel has been forced to handle the case until the funds needed to fly the body abroad are raised.

 

The Physicians for Human Rights organization is looking into a suspicion that Luida's employers bought her a flight ticket after discovering that she was suffering from a malignant disease. They may have even convinced her to sign a hospital release form.

 

Despite her release, on March 18, the woman went into a coma and died four days later. As no complaint has been filed with the police, an investigation into the matter has yet to be launched.

 

Das Levy, an activist in the labor immigrants' community, was one of the last people to talk to Luida. She even managed to get her to sign a power of attorney in order to demand her last salary and unpaid days of leave.

 

According to Levy, Luida had asked her employer to pay for her medical insurance, and was told that the matter was being handled. When she felt unwell, her employer told her she was probably feeling weak because of her monthly period.

 

"After the first time Luida was hospitalized, her employer informed her that she had bought her a flight ticket and that if she wished to receive her last salary, a payment for her days of leave and additional rights, she must go to Ben-Gurion Airport.

 

"She was afraid to go to her employer and asked her sister for help. Had Luida not called her sister, she would have been taken to the airport," said Levy, who is a trained nurse.

 

"Had she been diagnosed and treated on time, she could have lived longer rather than die within 10 days. Early detection would have helped prevent some of the symptoms. One must not ignore the body's signals, particularly when her employer is a doctor. She should have recommended that she undergo tests. They only believed her when they saw her falling down.

 

"The employer wasn't even interested in her situation at the hospital. After having Luida work for them for five years – it's simply inhuman," she added.

 

Law not enforced

The Foreign Workers Law (1991) requires employers to pay their workers' medical insurance during the entire employment period. The average price of private insurance totals about $1.3 a day.

 

The employer of a supportive worker usually pays 50% of the sum and the rest is paid by the worker. In the agriculture and construction industries, the employer pays 75% of the sum and the rest is paid by the worker. A person who applies for the employment of a foreign worker must sign a commitment at the Interior Ministry to purchase medical insurance for the worker.

 

Physicians for Human officials said that the enforcement of the law was problematic, and that only in individual cases employers have been fined for hiring a foreign worker without insurance.

 

Nonetheless, workers who are insured do not always receive proper medical treatment. Every month, dozens of workers file complaints against insurance companies refusing to cover different treatments. The insurance does not cover cases of illnesses which began before it was purchased. In cases in which the employer moves from one company to another and there is no insurance sequence – the foreign worker may find himself without any coverage.

 

"If the employer is neglectful, the worker is eventually hurt. Luida arrived at the hospital in serious condition. It appears that she did not receive minimal treatment, although it is most likely that she was not feeling well and had complained to her employer. Her disease may have been identified earlier," said Ran Cohen, who is in charge of the work immigrants' project at Physicians for Human Rights.

 

"Luida's insurance ended a year earlier, and employer may have kept her without insurance. This is a criminal offense, which ended in death this time," he added.

 

According to Cohen, the employers realized that hospitalization would cost them NIS 3,000 a day, and apparently wanted to send Luida back home in order to save on costs.

 

"If it turns out that she was prevented from seeking medical treatment and was not allowed to see a doctor, there is a criminal aspect here. This is real negligence," he said.

 

When the organization turned to the employer, the woman explained that she had bought Luida a flight ticket to the Philippines, as "it's better for her to go there and die among her family." The employer also claimed that Luida had refused to sign a health statement form as a condition for renewing the insurance.

 

Physicians for Human Rights claimed, however, that the signature is only required when the person first joins the insurance, and that if another signature was needed it means that the employer did not renew the insurance on time.

 

When approached by Ynet, the employer closed the phone and did not respond to any further inquiries.

 

On Saturday, Levy asked the Filipino workers' community to donate money during church prayers in order to fly Luida's body to be buried in her homeland.

 

"I don't want to think what could have happened to her had no one reported this to us. She would have died with no one knowing about it. They didn’t treat her like a human being should be treated. After serving the employer a person is thrown away like a dog, without honoring her rights as a human being and without honoring the law. She took care of all the members of that family."

  

A Hasharon Hospital official said that Luida Dela Cruz had signed a letter saying she did not want to receive treatment, and that the hospital's director, Dr. Yaron Mushkat, had explained to her that she must be treated. The hospital also said that although she did not have medical insurance, Luida received full treatment.

 


פרסום ראשון: 03.29.09, 11:41
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