Thursday, May 26, 2011
A CEBUANO legislator who has expressed strong opposition against the reproductive health (RH) bill seeks to regulate the packaging, sale, and advertisement of hormonal contraceptives.
Hormonal contraceptives are defined as birth control methods that may cause ovulation to cease preventing the possibility of fertilization, among others.
Deputy Speaker and Cebu’s second district Representative Pablo “Pabling” Garcia filed House Bill 4482 to protect Filipino women from the adverse side effects of hormonal contraceptives and prohibit their sale to minors “to safeguard the morals of the youth”.
The bill cited a study by the International Agency for Research on Cancers, a division of the World Health Organization, which concluded that “combined oral contraceptives are carcinogenic to humans…”
The proposed legislation stated that some of the side effects that are commonly experienced as a result of estrogen and progesterone birth control use include vomiting, irregular menstruation and spotting, weight gain or loss of appetite, depression, high blood pressure and cholesterol, and bone density loss, among others.
More serious complications associated with the use of hormonal contraceptives include vision impairment, gallbladder disease, immune system suppression, heart attack, breast and liver tumors, ectopic pregnancies and bood clots in legs, lungs, heart and brain.
Under Garcia’s proposed measure, all packages of hormonal contraceptives shall contain the following health warning: “Hormonal contraceptives are dangerous to women’s health”.
The warning shall be located on the most visible side of the package and shall occupy not less than 50 percent of that side of the package, including any border or frame.
In addition to the health warning, all packages shall likewise contain a statement prohibiting its sale and distribution to minors.
Once approved, those who will be caught breaking the law will be penalized with imprisonment of up to two years and a fine of up to P50,000 plus revocation or cancellation of business permits and licenses to operate.
If the guilty officer is an alien, he shall summarily be deported and shall forever be banned from re-entering the Philippines.
Representative Garcia, along with other lawmakers in Cebu, are opposing the controversial RH measure now pending for approval on second reading in the House of Representatives.
The Deputy Speaker earlier this week engaged in a heated debate with RH author Minority Leader Edcel Lagman, even lecturing him about religion and morality.