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Family planning services uninterrupted by COVID-19 emergency –Duterte


Family planning services had not been interrupted even as the government was focused on the implementation of containment measures against the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), President Rodrigo Duterte assured Congress.

In his second weekly report as mandated by the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, Duterte said that the Commission on Population and Development (POPCOM) continued with its responsible parenthood family planning program during the national health emergency.

The POPCOM on March 25 issued guidelines on uninterrupted resupply of pills and condoms and family planning information by barangay population volunteers/workers during the public health emergency.

The guidelines also mandated the monitoring of the local government units’ compliance especially in areas in total lockdown.

Duterte declared a public health emergency last month to address the threat of COVID-19, a respiratory illness that has already killed 163 people in the Philippines.

On Monday, Albay Representative Edcel Lagman asked the government to ensure continued delivery of free contraceptives and other reproductive health supplies to couples “to prevent unplanned, unwanted and high-risk pregnancies.”

The lawmaker also said drug stores and pharmacies should also have an adequate supply of contraceptives and other reproductive health supplies for couples who can afford to buy them.

Lagman is the primary author of the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Law. — DVM, GMA News

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