International Day of Action for Women’s Health:

Women’s health is a right, not a privilege: Resist privatization, fight for free quality healthcare!

By GABRIELA Philippines
May 29, 2025

MANILA – On the International Day of Action for Women’s Health, GABRIELA Philippines joins women around the world in asserting that women’s health is a fundamental right – not a commodity to be bought, sold, or denied. In the Philippines, this right is under grave threat. The Marcos Jr. administration continues a dangerous legacy of slashing budgets for public health services while abdicating its constitutional responsibility to protect the people’s welfare – passing this mandate instead to private, profit-hungry corporations, who in turn squeeze ordinary Filipinos dry with the high costs of health care.

The Philippine public health system has been hollowed out by years of privatization under policies that prioritize public-private partnerships over direct public investment. This is clearly illustrated in the 2025 national expenditure program of the government, which saw the health department get a meager share of 4%. This translates to even lower funding for public hospitals and several key health programs like the Medical Assistance to Indigent and Financially Incapacitated Program. Meanwhile, PhilHealth – an insurance company tasked to implement the state’s sham Universal Healthcare Law, that has instead diverted billions of funds to private hospitals – received zero funding, which effectively passed onto contributors the state’s duty to ensure coverage of indigents and indirect contributors.

This deliberate defunding and privatization of health care have dire consequences, especially for Filipino women who are the primary caregivers in their families and communities. As costs of medical care soar, women bear the brunt – paying out of pocket for basic health needs of the family, maternal care, medicines, and hospitalization. 2023 data from the government shows the top health financing scheme in the country being “household out-of-pocket expenses” more than government schemes and programs. Filipino women in the family also often delay or forego check-ups due to unaffordable consultation and diagnostic fees, leading to worsened conditions.

The particular impacts on women are stark, brutal, and alarming. Maternal mortality remains high, with about 59 maternal deaths per month in 2024 as reported by the Center for Women’s Resources (CWR). Maternal services remain scant and unaffordable, as there are only 3,238 birthing homes across the country – more than half of which are private facilities. CWR also reports that the Philippines holds the top spot in Asia with the most breast cancer-related deaths, while the country holds the 3rd highest incidence of the disease in the region. Additionally, about 22 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer daily – a horrific figure that hardly comes close to the actual number of women with this disease, as CWR notes that only 1% of the 54 million women in the country was screened in 2023. CWR further revealed that 65% of cancer cases in the country do not get diagnosed until its late stages where survival rate drops significantly.