Banning home births to worsen, not improve maternal death rate – health groups

By ANNE MARXZE D. UMIL
Bulatlat.com

MANILA – The statistics is glaring. Two hundred and twenty one mothers die in every 100,000 live births, according to the 2011 data of the National Statistics Office. It has increased from 162 in 2009. Purportedly to address the problem of maternal deaths, the Department of Health (DOH) implemented a policy discouraging home births assisted by traditional birth attendants (TBAS) or hilots.

Mothers from the ubran poor community protest against “

No Home Birthing Policy” of the DOH.

(Photo by Anne Marxze D. Umil / bulatlat.com)

The Department of Health passed Administrative Order 2008-0029 known as “Implementing Health Reforms towards Rapid Reduction in Maternal and Neonatal Mortality,” called the “No Home Birthing Policy,” during the administration of former president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. This policy was also intended to enable the Philippines to achieve its commitment to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The MDGs include lowering maternal mortality rate to 52 per 100,000 live births in 

2015.

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