Big business urged to back bigger health budget

MANILA, Philippines — A partylist lawmaker on Monday said that big businesses should instead back increases in the budget for health services to make them more accessible to those in need.

Gabriela Representative Emmi de Jesus said it would be better if firms can place their support for “increased health budget to build more health facilities to make health services accessible to women in far-flung areas.”

She was reacting to large businesses’ pledge to support a national modern family planning program.

A new version of the RH Bill, copies of which were circulated back in the middle of October, only promotes family planning methods which “will not prevent the implantation of the fertilized ovum” and those approved only by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Under the new version of the bill, target beneficiaries for distribution of products and supplies for the family planning program will be determined by the National Household Targeting System.

“I am for the passage of the RH bill. In fact, Gabriela passed our own version of RH bill and most of its provisions are included in HB 4244,” she clarified, pointing out however that their group preferred to have three provisions on population control deleted.

“It is not right that we blame poverty on women. Women’s right to informed choice must not be imperiled by any designs for population control,” she said, vowing to urge fellow lawmakers to omit the population control provisions.