Five Candidates Vie for CASS Pensioner Board Seats in Andorra

Five candidates are contesting seats to represent CASS pensioners on the board of directors, as deposit voting continues at CASS offices on Joan Maragall Street in Andorra la Vella and through mobile units rotating across parishes until Wednesday. Recent audiovisual interviews highlight sharp differences on pension sustainability, inadequate benefits including those below minimum wage, widowhood and orphanhood payments, and mandatory complementary plans, amid calls for higher turnout to strengthen oversight.

Ignasi Arbusà, retired CASS medical benefits director with expertise in healthcare management, quality, and bioethics, is running with Anna Galbe as substitute. He calls for revising the board's exclusive powers to grant management more autonomy, streamlining internal processes, curbing avoidable healthcare demand, and boosting staff morale. For the 21,000 pensioners, Arbusà seeks to expand 100% coverage for multiple diseases and high-medication cases, full outpatient benefits for those under specific illnesses or Article 7, monthly or annual caps on drug co-payments after which coverage is total, longer prescriptions, equal medication access during temporary travel abroad, faster approvals, better access for those with physical or sensory disabilities, and temporary level-2 disability for pensioners unable to work. He deems pension reforms urgent but urges measured timing and intensity, rejecting mandatory complementary plans until public pensions ensure dignity.

Florenci Pla, a mathematics professor specializing in data analysis, campaigns with Sílvia Ortega as substitute. He prioritizes 25-year projections, financial transparency, process digitalization, and targeted healthcare spending controls, including closer review of sick leave without challenging valid cases. Pla supports reforms in principle but demands details on methods, costs, and impacts. He sees complementary plans as useful but voluntary, warning that boosting widowhood or orphanhood benefits would raise taxes or contributions.

The other pensioner candidates—Josep Garcia, Lluís Sàmper, and Pere Canturri with Maria Armengol as substitute—differ on past projection failures. Garcia cites shortfalls in contributions and investments. Sàmper dismisses warnings as unfulfilled alarms. Canturri insists on immediate action after delays, emphasizing clear communication so pensioners grasp decisions and reforms. A majority view sub-minimum-wage pensions as unacceptable and push widowhood/orphanhood reviews, though Pla cites costs. Complementary plans split them: Garcia favors mandates, Canturri awareness drives, Sàmper and Arbusà opposition.

Business candidates Daniel Armengol and Àlex Lligé, joined by Manuel Carranza with Òscar Becerra as substitute for self-employed accounts, oppose mandatory complementary plans. Armengol recalls the 2008 law forcing shifts from private options and calls reform unavoidable. Lligé agrees compulsion is poor policy, preferring alternatives. Carranza seeks fairer retirement linked to contributions, better sick leave coverage for those unable to work, and simpler procedures. All address low pensions and insufficient widowhood/orphanhood benefits.

Wage-earner candidates, including Salustià Chato with Cèlia Realp as substitute from the Sindical Platform, demand dignified pensions without eroding current rights. They reject raising retirement age or devaluing pension points, support caps on high pensions with minimum guarantees, and oppose sub-minimum benefits. Chato proposes redirecting some illness contributions to pensions and broadening chronic illness support. Broad consensus among them—including Neus Cervera, Anna Carrión, Ramon Pedrosa, Montserrat Martínez, Miquel Àngel Adrán, and Mercè Avellanet—holds for reform without harming existing conditions, based on rigorous studies and social dialogue.

Four years ago, pensioners had one uncontested candidate; this year's five, plus more in other colleges, reflect growing engagement despite government board majorities. Candidates urge participation via senior centers, media capsules, and direct outreach to foster consensus and scrutiny.