MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine government has provided financial assistance to two overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) hospitalized in the United States and to the widow of another OFW who recently passed away, the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) announced Thursday.
The support, facilitated through the Migrant Workers Office in Washington, D.C. (MWO-WDC) and funded by the DMW’s AKSYON Fund, aims to alleviate the financial burdens faced by OFWs and their families during medical emergencies.
According to the DMW, two OFWs currently receiving treatment in Miami, Florida, each received 75,000 Philippine pesos (approximately $1,345). One worker, who suffered a heart attack, was medically evacuated from Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba in February 2025 and is now under care at Jackson Memorial Perdue Medical Center. The other, a cruise ship seafarer, was found unconscious in his cabin aboard the Margaritaville at Sea cruise ship on April 23, 2025, and is being treated in the intensive care unit at HCA Florida Kendall Hospital.
MWO-WDC representatives visited the hospitalized workers on May 19 and 20 to personally deliver the financial aid and assess their conditions, the DMW said.
In addition, the widow of an OFW who died of stage four lung cancer on May 17, 2025, while hospitalized at Jackson Memorial Hospital received 100,000 pesos ($1,793). The worker had been stationed at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base. The widow traveled from the Philippines to Florida, where she was met by MWO-WDC staff who offered condolences and provided the financial assistance.
Labor Attaché Saul De Vries emphasized the government’s commitment to supporting OFWs, stating, “We have extended the assistance in pursuit of the thrust of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac to come to the aid of OFWs and their families wherever they are and wherever needed.”
The AKSYON Fund, established to provide rapid response to OFWs in distress, underscores the Philippine government’s ongoing efforts to protect the welfare of its citizens working abroad.
