DOH Assures Implementation Of RH Law Despite Cut On Its 2016 Budget

The Department of Health assured on Wednesday that the implementation of the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health (RPRH) Law will continue despite the P1-billion cut in the DOH budget for Family Health and Responsible Parenting for 2016.

“The RPRH Law (or Republic Act No. 19354) is a law that the (President) Aquino administration will push forward and implement,” Health Secretary Janette L. Garin said in a press briefing held at DOH Media Relations Unit in Tayuman, Sta. Cruz, Manila.

“We do agree na merong challenges na nangyari noong magkaroon ng budget bicameral conference committee deliberations last year, but this will not stop us from implementing the RPRH Law,” she said.

She added that in a meeting of the DOH with the Senate Committee on Finance and the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) last Jan. 11, 2016, they discussed the issue on the DOH budget reduction.

She said that based on the result of the meeting, the funding will not be hindered in the first two quarters of this year while they are looking at the same time into other sources of funds.

Last Jan. 4, 2016, the DOH learned that in the 2016 General Appropriations Act, the budget for the line item Family Health and Responsible Parenting was reduced from P3.2 billion to P2.2 billion.

The reduction was proposed during the bicameral conference committee meeting by the Senate Committee on Finance and was subsequently approved.

The P1-billion cut will affect the procurement of family planning commodities.

The remaining P2.2 billion is intended for the purchase of vaccines and micronutrients, medicines, and dental supplies.

“Realigning the remaining P2.2 billion for the purchase of family planning commodities is not possible because this will mean sacrificing immunization, nutrition and other health programs, which already have identified beneficiaries,” Secretary Garin said.

She added that these programs are also important in meeting the country’s commitments for the Sustainable Development Goals.

According to the DOH Chief, while it is true that the budget for family health and responsible parenting was cut, the DOH will continue to procure family planning commodities using the P337.5 million sourced from the 2015 budget.

The said budget was originally intended to purchase additional blood pressure apparatus for barangay health workers.

Secretary Garin said the DOH is looking for other sources of funds, which may include agency savings identified and declared at the end of the year, as well as assistance from developmental partners.

Meanwhile, she said that Senator Loren Legarda, the Senate Finance Committee chair, has assured the DOH that she (Legarda) will make representations with the next President of the Philippines to allow the use of DOH savings for the purchase of family planning commodities.

Republic Act No. 10354 or the RPRH Law was passed by Congress in 2012 and subsequently declared constitutional by the Supreme Court in 2014.

Considered a landmark health legislation of the Aquino administration, this law ensures access to reproductive health information, life-saving commodities, and services to reduce maternal mortality and empower families to decide on the number and spacing of their children.

“The Aquino administration, through the DOH, assures the full implementation of the RH Law despite these challenges. Sa tulong po ninyo, ating maaabot ang Kalusugan Pangkalahatan,” the Health Chief stressed. (PNA) SCS/LSJ