Clinics for teen moms sought in Congress

Quezon City 5th District Rep. Patrick Michael Vargas has filed a bill seeking to establish Teen Mom Clinics in public hospitals nationwide to provide pregnant teenagers and teen mothers with comprehensive healthcare.

Under House Bill No. 3988, or the proposed “Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Act,” the Department of Health (DOH) would establish specialized Teen Mom Clinics to provide comprehensive prenatal, antenatal, and postnatal care, as well as postpartum counseling to help prevent repeat pregnancies.

The proposed measure also directs the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to expand its existing residential care facilities for disadvantaged women.

The expansion would include specialized multidisciplinary teams composed of social caseworkers, on-call obstetrician-gynecologists, full-time midwives or nurses, and psychologists, all specifically trained to address the complex needs of pregnant minors.

The DSWD would also be mandated to lead the establishment of strengthened social protection mechanisms against sexual violence, with clear pathways and equipped facilities to protect adolescent victims.

Under the proposed mechanism, expectant and young mothers whose pregnancies resulted from sexual abuse would be provided immediate legal, medical, and psychosocial services.

"By establishing Teen Mom Clinics and strengthening DSWD shelters, we can promote the welfare of our young people and help them overcome the challenges they are facing. They need care and understanding instead of judgment and discrimination,” Vargas said.

Citing official data, the proposed measure noted an increase in live births among girls aged 10 to 14, from 2,320 in 2021 to 3,135 in 2022.

This represented a 35% increase in live births among girls in the age group.

Civil registration records further showed that more than 130,000 of the 180,000 births to minor mothers were fathered by adult men, pointing to cases of statutory rape, incest, and sexual exploitation.

"Adolescent pregnancy is a socioeconomic barrier that often conceals cases of sexual abuse and exploitation. We need safe spaces where young people can seek refuge and heal physically and mentally,” Vargas said.

The proposed measure would also create the Teenage Pregnancy Prevention Council, to be chaired by the DOH secretary and the Commission on Population and Development (POPCOM).

The inter-agency council would include representatives from the DSWD, Department of Education (DepEd), National Youth Commission (NYC), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Commission on Higher Education (CHED), and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) to coordinate healthcare, educational continuity, and legal support.

The bill also requires the establishment of Teen Centers in all municipalities, funded through 10% of the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) fund.

It would provide automatic PhilHealth coverage for indigent teenage mothers and require schools to include an Adolescent Reproductive Health Curriculum.

The measure also supports sustainable livelihoods through TESDA skills training and prohibits schools from expelling pregnant minors or employers from dismissing them because of their pregnancy.

"When we provide specialized healthcare and safe shelters, we protect young mothers from trauma and give them a fighting chance at a better life," Vargas said.

"We ensure that our young people receive genuine care and protection so they can build a better future for themselves and for the country,' he added.— MCG, GMA News