Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act of 2012

Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act of 2012
An Act providing for a national policy on Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health
Citation	Republic Act No. 10354
Enacted by	House of Representatives of the Philippines
Date enacted	December 19, 2012
Enacted by	Senate of the Philippines
Date enacted	December 19, 2012
Date signed	December 21, 2012
Signed by	Miriam Defensor Santiago
Date commenced	January 17, 2013
Legislative history
Bill introduced in the House of Representatives of the Philippines	An Act Providing for a Comprehensive Policy on Responsible Parenthood, Reproductive Health, and Population and Development, and for Other Purposes
Bill citation	House Bill 4244
Bill published on	January 21, 2011
Introduced by	Edcel Lagman (Albay)
First reading	February 21, 2011
Second reading	December 12, 2012
Third reading	December 17, 2012
Conference committee bill passed	December 19, 2012
Bill introduced in the Senate of the Philippines	An Act Providing for a National Policy on Reproductive Health and Population and Development
Bill citation	Senate Bill 2865
Bill published on	June 6, 2011
Introduced by	Pia Cayetano
First reading	June 6, 2012
Second reading	December 17, 2012
Third reading	December 17, 2012
Conference committee bill passed	December 19, 2012
Date passed by conference committee	December 19, 2012
Keywords
Family planning, reproductive health
Status: Not fully in force

The Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act of 2012 (Republic Act No. 10354), informally known as the Reproductive Health Law or RH Law, is a law in the Philippines, which guarantees universal access to methods on contraception, fertility control, sexual education, and maternal care.

While there is general agreement about its provisions on maternal and child health, there is great debate on its mandate that the Philippine government and the private sector will fund and undertake widespread distribution of family planning devices such as condoms, birth control pills, and IUDs, as the government continues to disseminate information on their use through all health care centers.

Passage of the legislation was controversial and highly divisive, with experts, academics, religious institutions, and major political figures declaring their support or opposition while it was pending in the legislature. Heated debates and rallies both supporting and opposing the RH Bill took place nationwide.

The Supreme Court delayed implementation of the law in March 2013 in response to challenges. On April 8, 2014, the Court ruled that the law was "not unconstitutional" but struck down eight provisions partially or in full.

According to the Senate Policy Brief titled "Promoting Reproductive Health", the history of reproductive health in the Philippines dates back to 1967 when leaders of 12 countries including the Philippines' Ferdinand Marcos signed the Declaration on Population. The Philippines agreed that the population problem should be considered as the principal element for long-term economic development. Thus, the Population Commission was created to push for a lower family size norm and provide information and services to lower fertility rates.

Starting 1967, the USAID began shouldering 80% of the total family planning commodities (contraceptives) of the country, which amounted to $3 million annually. In 1975, the United States adopted as its policy the National Security Study Memorandum 200: Implications of Worldwide Population Growth for U.S. Security and Overseas Interests (NSSM200). The policy gives "paramount importance" to population control measures and the promotion of contraception among 13 populous countries, including the Philippines to control rapid population growth which they deem to be inimical to the sociopolitical national interests of the United States, since the "U.S. economy will require large and increasing amounts of minerals from abroad", and these countries can produce destabilizing opposition forces against the United States. It recommends the U.S. leadership to "influence national leaders" and that "improved world-wide support for population-related efforts should be sought through increased emphasis on mass media and other population education and motivation programs by the UN, USIA, and USAID.

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