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FOURTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE ) 
First Regular Session 
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REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
Introduced by Senator Loren Legarda 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
This bill seeks to ensure that proper medical attention and consideration is 
provided to every patient undergoing cosmetic procedure, particularly female patients 
who might be aware or unaware that they are pregnant. 
According to the Department of Health, the Philippines has earned an estimated 
$200 million from medical tourists in the year 2006. This is a manifestation that our 
medical tourism holds potentials and is fast keeping up with our western counterparts. 
As the said industry is still developing, our safety standards should always be 
kept on a high level to ensure its growth in the global market. It is in this sense that this 
proposed measure is presented to guarantee the safety of the patrons of our medical 
services, particularly women, foreign and local, alike. 
The bill ensures the conduct of mandatory pregnancy testing and further, the 
mandatory disclosure of potential risks of cosmetic procedures. The penalties for the 
violation of the same are also in place in order to put teeth into the measure. 
Moreover, this proposed legislation is in line with the State policy, as enshrined 
in our 1987 Constitution, that the State shall equally protect the life of the mother and 
the life of the unborn from conception. '(Article 11, Section 12) 
In view of the foregoing, the passage of this bill is earnestly sought. 
LOREN LEGARDA 
Senator 
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I 
FOURTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE ) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
) 
First Regular Session 
Introduced by Senator Loren Legarda 
AN ACT 
PROVIDING FOR THE MANDATORY PREGNANCY TESTING OF ALL WOMEN 
OF CHILDBEARING AGE WHO WILL UNDERGO COSMETIC PROCEDURES 
THAT ARE HARMFUL TO PREGNANT WOMEN AND UNBORN CHILDREN, 
AND DISCLOSURE OF THE POTENTIAL RISKS OF SUCH PROCEDURES AND 
FOR OTHER PURPOSES 
Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress 
assem bled: 
SECTION 1. Declaration ofPokcy. - It is the declared policy of the State to ensure 
the well being of patients, especially the protection of pregnant women and the right to 
life beginning from conception against the potential risks of cosmetic procedures. 
Towards this end, the State shall provide for the mandatory pregnancy testing of a11 
women of childbearing age who will undergo cosmetic procedures and guarantee the 
safety of all patients from the harmful effects that may be caused by cosmetic 
procedures through disclosure requirement of potential risks of such procedures. 
SECTION 2. Definition of Terms. - For the purpose of this Act, the following 
terminologies shall be construed as: 
(a) "Childbearing Age" shall refer to the age group during which period a 
female is capable of procreation; 
(b) "Cosmetic procedure" shall refer to a subspecialty of medicine and 
surgery that distinctly restricts itself to the enhancement of appearance 
through surgical and medical techniques and is primarily concerned 
with maintaining normal appearance, restoring it, or enhancing it 
beyond the average level toward some aesthetic ideal. It is a 
multidisciplinary approach that is directed to all areas of the head, 
neck and body; 
(c) "Cosmetic Provider" shall refer to any firm or corporation and any of 
its medical associate or cosmetic surgeon offering expertise in a broad 
range of 
cosmetic services duly certified by the Professional 
Regulatory Commission who is in active practice of cosmetic surgery; 
(d) "Human Chorionic Gonadrophin" (HCG) shall refer to the hormone 
produced during pregnancy which appears in the blood and urine of 
pregnant women as early as ten (10) days after conception; 
(e) "Medical practitioner" shall refer to any physician, nurse or 
paramedical or other supporting personnel duly certified by the 
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Professional Regulatory Commission who is capable of administering 
accurate pregnancy testing; 
(f) "Pregnancy" shall refer to the period from conception to birth and 
begins when the egg is fertilized by a sperm and then implanted in the 
lining of the uterus, develops into the placenta and embryo and later 
on into a fetus; 
(g) "Pregnancy test" shall refer to the procedure in which the hormone 
called Human Chorionic Gonadrophin (HCG) is measured; 
(h) "Unborn child" shall refer to an unborn offspring of human beings 
from the moment of conception, through pregnancy, and until live 
birth including the human conceptus, zygote, morula, blastocyst, 
embryo and fetus. 
SECTION 3. Mandatory Pregnancy Testing. - The State shall, in the interest of 
ensuring the well being of pregnant women and protecting the welfare of the unborn 
children, require all Cosmetic Providers to subject women of childbearing age, who 
shall undergo cosmetic procedures that may be harmful to pregnant women and 
unborn children, to a mandatory pregnancy testing. The test shall be administered by 
the Cosmetic Provider or any of its accredited medical practitioner who shall certify to 
the veracity or authenticity of the test. Provided, however, that those women who have 
been found to be infertile or incapable to reproduce based on objective criteria as may 
be supported by a certified medical record shall be exempt from the provisions of this 
Act. Objective criteria for ruling out potential pregnancy include total hysterectomy, 
bilateral tubal ligation or the passage of at least one year without menses or menopause. 
Mandatory pregnancy testing shall be routinely performed prior to any cosmetic 
procedure that the Cosmetic Provider may consider harmful to pregnant women and 
unborn children. Harmful cosmetic procedures include those that require the 
administration of general anaesthesia and other types of anaesthesia that the Cosmetic 
Provider may deem detrimental to the well being of the pregnant women and unborn 
children. 
SECTION 4. Conduct of Pregnancy Testing. - The test shall be administered, 
primarily for the purpose of determining pregnancy, either by collecting a urine sample 
or extracting blood serum from the woman. Pregnancy testing may be Qualitative in 
order to determine if HCG hormone is present and/or Quantitative in order to measure 
how much HCG is present. 
SECTION 5. Mandatory Disclosure of Potential Risks of Cosmetic Pracedures. - It shall 
be the obligation of the Cosmetic Provider to make a reasonable disclosure of available 
choices with respect to a cosmetic procedure and to inform the patient of the precise 
and potential risks associated with specific cosmetic procedure and the possible dangers 
of undergoing the same when a woman is pregnant. The Cosmetic Provider shall 
explicitly give advise in lay terms or in a manner that the patient can give an informed 
or intelligent consent to such procedure. 
SECTION 6. Prohibited Acts. - The following acts shall constitute an offense 
punishable under this Act: 
(a) 
Failure to inform the patient of the potential risks of cosmetic 
procedures as prescribed under Section 5 of this Act; 


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(b) 
Performing cosmetic procedure to any woman of childbearing age that 
is harmful to pregnant women and unborn children without the 
required pregnancy test; 
Performing cosmetic procedure of any woman who has been positively 
found to be pregnant even when there is full disclosure or signed 
waiver of the right to sue over a denied and undetected pregnancy on 
the part of the woman. 
(c) 
SECTION 7. Penalties. - Any Cosmetic Provider who violates any provision of 
this Act shall be punished by prision mayor and the cancellation of the license to practice 
cosmetic procedure and a fine ranging from Five Hundred Thousand Pesos (Php 
500,000.00) to One Million Pesos (Php 1,000,000.00) in the discretion of the Court taking 
into consideration all attending circumstances. 
If the offense is committed by a corporation, partnership, or other juridical entity 
duly organized in accordance with law, the chief executive officer, president, general 
manager, managing partner or such other officer-in-charge shall be liable for the 
commission of the offense penalized under this Act and the cancellation of its business 
permit and license to operate. 
SECTION8. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The Department of Health shall 
promulgate and issue the necessary rules and regulations for the effective 
implementation of the provisions of this Act within thirty (30) days after the effectivity 
of this Act. 
SECTION 9. Repeuling Clause. - All laws, decrees, executive orders, rules and 
regulations or parts thereof inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby 
repealed or modified accordingly. 
SECTION 10. Separability Clause. - If for any reason, a provision or part thereof is 
declared invalid, other provisions not affected thereby shall remain in full force and 
effect. 
SECTION 11. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after 
its publication in the Official Gazette or in two (2) newspapers of general circulation. 
Approved, 
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