ensure that women receive quality post-abortion care in public health facilities, regardless of the  77 women’s circumstances. Further the government should –     ensure that women experiencing abortion-related complications are not reported to the law  enforcement authorities, threatened with arrest, or subjected to physical or verbal abuse,  discrimination, stigma, delays in access to or denial of care; adopt a patient privacy policy to ensure  doctor-patient confidentiality, specifically when treating women for abortion-related complications;  ensure effective reporting procedures, available for women in need of post-abortion care to complain  about abuse and discrimination, without fear of retaliation; and conduct research on the incidence of  unsafe abortions in the State party and their impact on women’s health and maternal mortality and  78 morbidity….        Conclusion and Recommendations   This document hopefully provided a broad view of the status of women’s reproductive health and  rights in the country. In the process it forwarded the following key ideas: First, that reproductive  health is not only a bio-medical discourse but also a condition situated in the economic, social,  cultural and political environment. Second, the diversity among women across age, socio-economic  status, geographic location, religion, ethnicity and sexual orientation and gender identity, is a major  consideration in appreciating the national achievements with regard gender equality and  reproductive health; unfortunately, the continued invisibility of some groups of women blurs the  disparity in the distribution of benefits and experience of empowerment. Thirdly, the RH law,  complemented by the Magna Carta of Women and other gender equality-related laws, is a tool to  promote women’s right to health yet it is also an evolving document, subject to the outcomes of  legal challenges, and interpretations of its stakeholders.     The recommendations below present the synthesis of proposed actions to address the gaps and  challenges to fulfill women’s reproductive rights from the various reports consulted for this  situationer:    1. Review related policies and rulings to identify and address provisions that are ​de jure​ and ​de  facto​ discriminatory against women and hinder the realization of their reproductive rights.  These include the following:  a. Local Government Code on its provisions with regard decentralization of health  services and information, and to ensure that women are able to exercise their  reproductive rights and access needed services, without discrimination based on their  geographical location (e.g. urban or rural, highly urbanized city or 6​th​ class  municipality)  b. The Supreme Court ruling on ​Imbong vs Ochoa​ on the issue of conscientious objection  that has been used to circumvent the full implementation of the law in certain LGUs.  Related to this, and in the same ruling, review the non-accountability of public  officials refusing to implement the law for the same reason.  77 78 CEDAW/C/OP.8/PHL/1  Ibid.    26 RH Situationer: Phlippines (November 2017)

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