Romualdez: New contraceptive pill to enter RP if...

Health Secretary Alberto Romualdez said yesterday it is still possible for the controversial and allegedly abortifacient contraceptive pill RU 486 to enter the country once it passes all standards and regulations of the Bureau of Food and Drugs (BFAD).

Romualdez said though that he does not believe that RU 486 or Mifepristone, a French-manufactured drug, can cause abortion.

"I don’t think it is abortifacient. But nonetheless, we still need to resolve the pill’s acceptability to majority of the population. If the drug proves to be more beneficial than harmful, then it can become an effective part of the department’s family planning program," he said.

Family planning methods approved and being promoted by the Department of Health are oral contraceptives, condoms, intra-uterine devices (IUDs), injectable contraceptives, voluntary surgical sterilization, lactation amenorrhea method (breastfeeding to stop ovulation) and natural family planning methods.

Medical experts say RU 486 is a "morning-after pill" which means it has to be taken within 72 hours after sexual intercourse. Two pills are to be taken simultaneously.

However, Levonorgestrel, another morning-after pill, has long been registered at BFAD and is allowed for initial use in the women and child protection units of hospitals.

Dr. Gina Pardilla, of the DOH’s Media Relations Unit, said both pills have similar properties in the sense that they prevent a fertilized ovum to get implanted in the uterus because they hamper the ample production of the hormone progesterone, which is essential for a fertilized egg cell to get attached to the uterus.

Those who oppose RU 486 claim that the mere fact that the pill is taken after sex makes it abortifacient, as compared to other oral contraceptive pills which are taken before sex on a daily basis.

But Pardilla argued that abortion is a subjective term and that it cannot be categorically determined if an abortion has occurred.

The Catholic Church has been vocal in its opposition to artificial contraceptive methods since they were introduced in the country.

Studies show that the total fertility rate of Filipino women remains high at 3.7, when an effective population program should have a TFR of only 2.1.