Senator Mark A. Villar is now seeking congressional passage of a measure seeking to improve the availability of healthcare services before, during, and after mothers give birth to a child.

Villar filed Senate Bill No. 1416 following recent reports on the increasing maternal and newborn mortalities.

The bill, entitled ''An Act Safeguarding the Health of Filipino Mothers at the Time of Their Childbirth, Providing Protective Mechanism Therefor and For Other Purposes,’’ aims to ensure the health and welfare of women throughout their pregnancy and during delivery of a child.

“I recognize how difficult the role of a mother is, especially during pregnancy and delivery. Totoo po na nasa hukay ang isang paa ng manganganak. Kaya mahalaga na nabibigyan sila ng kinakailangan na tulong (It is true that a foot of a woman about to give birth is already at the cemetery). Every child deserves safe delivery at the time of birth and every mother deserves to have a quality healthcare for a safe pregnancy and delivery,” Villar said.

According to the bill, the local government units (LGUs) shall encourage facility-based delivery among all women. Further, no maternal hospital, clinic, health center, lying-in, midwifery facility, or similar center, whether public or private, shall deny or refuse to assist, admit, or accept the entry of a mother at the time of childbirth.

Once enacted into law, Villar explained that this bill mandates the LGUs to upgrade and improve devolved health services and medical facilities to provide quality emergency obstetric care (EMOC).

“At this point in time, where all medical facilities are equipped with modern-day technologies, it's still alarming to know that there is an increasing number of maternal mortalities directly resulting from pregnancy complications during labor, delivery, and the postpartum period.” Villar said in a statement.

Based on the latest data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), direct obstetric deaths posted the highest growth rate among the causes of maternal death in the first semester of this year.

Accordingly, some 468 Filipinos were killed by “other direct obstetric deaths” representing a 10.1 percent increase from the 425 posted in the same last period, Villar stated in the explanatory note of his bill.

“We can also attribute maternal mortality due to access to services and location of health facilities. With the passage of the bill, I am certain that this administration will ensure access to health facilities for all expecting mothers regardless of economic status and location. It is time to act now that we strengthen the government's response to promote the health and well-being of Filipino mothers to avoid maternal deaths,” he added.

The Department of Health (DOH), in a recent press release, informed the public that it would champion primary care to address rising maternal and newborn mortalities.

Further, the DOH highlighted that advocating for the primary care reform envisioned under Universal Health Care is the key to addressing maternal and newborn mortalities.