The Reproductive Health Bill of 2011 is a controversial topic that has members of the 15th Congress of the Philippines furiously debating over the various issues concerning this bill. One of the bill’s strongest advocates is 5th District of Pangasinan Representative Kimi Cojuangco who also helped introduce House Bill 4244 (An Act providing for a Comprehensive Policy on Responsible Parenthood, Reproductive Health, and Population and Development and for Other Purposes) in congress.
       Her stint as mayor of Sison has given the lady solon a unique perspective on the plight of the under privileged population of this country. Perhaps that is why she supports this bill that is obviously in favor of the poor and marginalized. As mayor of Sison, she saw young girls looking more like middle aged women because they got pregnant too early and did not receive proper or adequate maternal health care. They look much older for their age as they struggle to support for more children each year, many if not all of them unplanned. Yet they are the lucky ones. There are many more who die at childbirth due to lack of pre-natal care.
She knows this is preposterous. She knows it is unnecessary as she is also witness to the privileged lifestyle of those who can afford contraceptives and have the means to regulate the number of children they want to raise. Beautiful, educated women who look as vibrant as ever, unburdened by the worries and toll that childbearing takes on a woman’s body.
       “The RH Bill's essence is the virtue of compassion. There is lot of falsehoods being spread in the name of religion”. ~ Rep. Kimi Cojuangco
      Contrary to claims of those who are critical of the Reproductive Health Bill, defenders of the bill are not out to disrespect the church policies or to enable the decay of morality in the country. They are advocating for the part of the population who continue to be underserved.
Paring down the basic components of the Reproductive Health Bill, it can be broken down to these salient points:
1.     Promote Reproductive Health Education (Family Planning)
2.     Prevent the spread of Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD)
3.     Lower maternal mortality rate
4.     Decrease population growth rate
5.     Protect women from unwanted pregnancies
6.     Promote responsible parenthood.
      Additional sections of the bill cover provisions for skilled and professional caregivers, funding of the various programs, procurement and distribution of family planning supplies, and mechanisms for implementing and overseeing the entire program.
      It is a huge and comprehensive bill that will largely benefit the entire country if the debates ever get beyond the moral compass of the Catholic Church. The religious argument of having people use only ‘natural methods‘of birth control, faith and discipline will no longer hold water in this day and age. It has obviously not worked in the past given the high infant and maternal mortality, increasing poverty and the growing population. It is now time to give the populace information and access to ‘real’ reproductive health services.