FOURTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC ) 
OF THE PHILIPPINES 
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First Regular Session 
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S E  
S. No. 
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Introduced by Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
The Constitution, Article 2, Section 15, provides that: 
The State shall protect and promote the right to health of the 
people and instill health consciousness among them. 
In the United States, the life expectancy gap between men and women has 
increased from one year in 1920 to almost six years in 2002. Here in the Philippines, in 
2005, the Department of Health (DOH) places the life expectancy of males at 67.83 years 
while that of women at 73.08 years. According to a study conducted by Dr. Thomas Perk 
and Dr. Ruth Fretts of the Harvard Medical School. women around the world have a 
survival advantage over men - sometimes by as much as 10 years. Main reasons for this * 
could be that women are 100% more likely than men to visit a doctor, have regular 
check-ups, and obtain preventive screening tests for serious diseases. 
This may result in a health crisis affecting the health and well-being of men. 
While this may be a particular concern of men, it may also be a concern for women 
regarding their fathers, husbands, sons, and brothers. Men's health is a concern for 
employers who pay the costs of medical care, and lose productive employees. Men's 
health is also a concern of our national and local governments that absorb the enormous 


costs of premature death and disability, including the costs of caring for dependents left 
behind. 
Appropriate use of tests which are exclusive for men such as prostate specific 
antigen for prostate cancer, doppler for varicocele, and testicular ultrasound for testicular 
cancer, can result in the early detection of many problems and in increased survival rates. 
Early detection of male health problems is vital as it can result in reducing rates of , 
mortality for male-specific diseases, and improve men’s health and their overall 
economic wellbeing. Thus, educating men, their families, and health care providers about 
this is imperative. 
An Office of Men’s Health is needed to coordinate the fragmented men’s health 
awareness, prevention, and research efforts being conducted by the DOH and non- 
government organizations. This bill seeks to save the lives of men by establishing an 
Office of Men’s Health within the DOH that will conduct further actions as may be 
needed to promote men’s health. 
IRIAM DEFE 
OR S A ~ T I A  
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FOURTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC ) 
OF THE PHILIPPINES 
1 
First Regular Session 
) 
S E N A T E  
S. No. 
Introduced by Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago 
AN ACT 
TO SAVE THE LIVES OF MEN BY ESTABLISHING WITHIN THE 
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AN OFFICE OF MEN’S HEALTH 
Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives ofthe Philippines in 
Congress assembled: 
SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the “Men’s Health Act of 
2007.” 
SECTION 2. Declaration ofPolicy. - It is the policy of the State to protect and 
promote the right to health of the people and instill health consciousness among them. 
SECTION 3. De$nition of Terms. - For purposes of this Act, the following terms 
shall mean: 
(a) “Men’s health conditions” - shall refer to all diseases, disorders, and 
conditions - 
(1) unique to, more serious, or more prevalent in men; 
(2) for which the factors of medical risk or types of medical intervention 
are different for men, or for which it is unknown whether such factors or types are 
different for men; or 
(3) with respect to which there has been insufficient clinical research 
involving men as subjects or insufficient clinical data on men. 
(b) ”Research on men’s health” - shall refer to research on men’s health 
conditions, including research on preventing such conditions. 
(c) “DOH’ - shall refer to the Department of Health. 
(d) “Secretary” - shall refer to the Department of Health (DOH) Secretary. 
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(e) “Director” - shall refer to the Director of the Office of Men’s Health. 
(9 “Committee” - shall refer to the Advisory Committee on Men’s Health. 
SECTION 4. OfJice of Men’s Health. - The Secretary shall establish within the 
DOH an office to be known as the Office of Men’s Health which shall be headed by a 
Director to be appointed by the DOH. The Director shall have the following functions: 
(a) coordinate and promote the status of men’s health throughout the country; 
(b) identify projects of research on men’s health that should be conducted or 
supported by both the government and non-government agencies; 
(c) promote coordination and collaboration among entities conducing research on 
men’s health, 
(d) recommend an agenda for conducting and supporting such research; and 
(e) encourage the conduct of such research. . 
SECTION 5. Advisory Committee OB Men j .  Health. - In assisting the Director in 
carrying out his functions, the Secretary shall establish a Committee to be known as the 
Advisory Committee on Men’s Health which shall have the following functions: 
(a) Advise the Secretary, through the Director, on appropriate research activities 
to be undertaken by the Office with respect to the Research on men’s health; 
@) Report to the Secretary, through the Director, on such research; 
(c) Provide recommendations to the Secretary, through the Director, regarding the 
activities of the Office on Men’s health; and 
(d) Prepare a report regarding the activities of the Committee. 
SECTION 6. Composition. - The Committee shall be composed of nine (9) 
members which shall include the following: 
(a) Two (2) representatives from the DOH; 
(b) Four (4) physicians, practitioners and other health personnel; 
(c) Two (2) representatives from a non-government organization which conducts 
research on men’s health; and 
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(d) One (1) representative from the general public. 
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SECTION 7. Meetings. - The Advisory Committee shall determine the number, 
time, and place and conduct of meetings, except that it shall hold at least one (1) public 
meeting each year at which the general public is given an opportunity to express views 
concerning the conduct of research on men’s health by the Office of Men’s Health. 
SECTION 8. Term. - Members shall be appointed by the Secretary for a term of 
three (3) years. Of those first appointed, three (3) members shall serve for three (3) years, 
three (3) members for two years, and the last three members for one (1) year. Any 
vacancy in the membership of the Committee shall be filled in the same manner as the 
original appointments. 
Any member of the Committee may be removed for cause in accordance with 
procedures established by the Committee. 
SECTION 9. Report. -Not later than two (2) years after the date of the enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary, acting through the Director, shall submit to the Congress a 
report describing the activities conducted by the Office of Men’s Health. 
SECTION 10. Appropriation. - To carry out the provisions of this Act, such 
amount as may be necessary is hereby authorized to be appropriated from the National 
Treasury. Thereafter, the amount necessary for the continuous operation of the Office of 
Men’s Health shall be included in the annual appropriation of the DOH. 
SECTION 11. Separability Clause. - If any provision or part thereof, is held 
invalid or unconstitutional, the remainder of the law of the provision not otherwise 
affected shall remain valid and subsisting. 
SECTION 12. Repealing Clause. - Any law, presidential decree or issuance, 
executive order, letter of instruction, administrative order, rule or regulation contrary to, 
or inconsistent with, the provisions of this Act is hereby repealed, modified or amended 
accordingly. 
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SECTION 13. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days 
after its publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation. 
Approved, 
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