MANILA — To reinforce Filipino family values and strengthen filial responsibility, Senator Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson has refiled the proposed Parents Welfare Act of 2025, a measure that seeks to criminalize the abandonment and neglect of aging, sick, or incapacitated parents by their children.

Lacson noted that while Filipinos are known for their strong family ties, increasing reports of elderly people being left on the streets reflect a growing disregard for parental care.

“Even with this close family ties, there are cases of elderly, sick, and incapacitated parents who were abandoned by their own children,” Lacson said. “This proposed bill therefore seeks to further strengthen filial responsibility and to make it a criminal offense in case of flagrant violation thereof.”

The bill builds on existing provisions of the Family Code, which imposes legal obligations to support elderly parents, and draws inspiration from similar laws in at least 30 U.S. states that penalize children for neglecting dependent parents.

Under the measure:

• A parent in need of support may file a petition in court to compel their child or children to provide support.
• The Public Attorney’s Office will provide free legal representation, and no court fees will be charged.
• Court-ordered support shall be immediately executory and cannot be blocked by temporary restraining orders or injunctions, except by the Supreme Court.
• If a child fails to provide court-ordered support for three consecutive months without justifiable cause, they may face one to six months of imprisonment or a P100,000 fine.
• Willful abandonment of a parent under one’s care may lead to six to 10 years in jail and a P300,000 fine.

To further assist elderly Filipinos, Lacson also proposed the establishment of an “Old Age Home” in every province and highly urbanized city, capable of accommodating at least 50 parents in need of shelter and care.

“Taking care of the elderly is not only the function of government, but rather a shared responsibility of government and the children of said elderly,” Lacson emphasized. “The care for the aged is neither an exclusively private matter to be left to the family nor an exclusively public concern best left to the government.”