Doctors’ group warns of falling Phl fertility rate

MANILA, Philippines - A group of doctors called “Doctors for Life” has called on President Duterte to slow down on the government’s reproductive health (RH) program, warning that the country’s population might already be dangerously aging, as Filipinos’ fertility rate continues to drop.

The Supreme Court has yet to lift a two-year-old restraining order on the RH Law, specifically the government’s distribution of contraceptive implants.

In a letter to the President, the group said the country’s national fertility rate has fallen from eight children to less than three in a span of over 50 years, and this could spell problems for the Philippines in the future.         

“There is no reason to believe that this trend will not continue, with or without contraceptives, because it is a result of rural to urban migration and educational and employment opportunities for women, not contraception, which inevitably includes abortion,” the group said.

“The greater danger is that it will proceed to below replacement level, as it is already in most of the world. Its population has grown too old to sustain the transition to a fully developed status,” it added.

According to Doctors for Life, an aging population brought about by below-replacement fertility could also affect the social security programs, which can become unsustainable as many countries in Asia and Europe are now experiencing.         

Many countries, the group said, are now suffering from aging population and have to hire foreign workers just to sustain their economies.

“We should not make the same mistake,” the group said, as it urged Duterte to look for other measures to address the problem of poverty.

The group claimed the RH Law violates the Constitution and could put the lives of many women at risk.

RH proponents point out that access to reproductive health services can in fact discourage women and teenage girls from resorting to abortion.

The country has committed to achieve UN Millennium Development Goals on universal access to RH services.