First 1000 Days: What RA 11148 Entitles You To
Health · benefits
Quick answer
RA 11148, the Kalusugan at Nutrisyon ng Mag-Nanay Act, covers pregnant and lactating women and children up to 24 months. It divides the first 1,000 days into a 270-day prenatal period, a 28-day newborn period, the first 180 days of infancy, then 6 months to 2 years.
Every figure on this page is from LawPhil Project's own published documents.
Last verified 1 source, listed below
Republic Act No. 11148, the Kalusugan at Nutrisyon ng Mag-Nanay Act1. PHGuides is independent and not affiliated with any agency.
Republic Act No. 11148, approved 29 November 2018, is the Kalusugan at Nutrisyon ng Mag-Nanay Act. Most coverage of it stops at the slogan. The Act itself is a list of services, sorted by how old the child is, and that structure is the useful part.
Where the number 1,000 comes from
The Act never adds it up in one sentence. It defines the stages, and the addition is yours to do.
| Stage | Section 8 | Length as the Act defines it |
|---|---|---|
| Prenatal period | (a) | 270 days |
| Women about to give birth and immediate postpartum | (b) | Not given a day count |
| Postpartum and lactating women | (c) | Support to 2 years and beyond |
| Birth and newborn period | (d) | 28 days |
| First six months of infancy | (e) | 180 days |
| Infants 6 months up to 2 years | (f) | To 24 months |
270 prenatal days plus roughly 730 days in the first two years is where 1,000 comes from. That arithmetic is on the Act, not a line inside it. Section 5 sets the outer edge of coverage at 24 months.
What each stage actually entitles you to
| Stage | Some of what Section 8 requires |
|---|---|
| Prenatal, 270 days | Pregnancy tracking and enrollment to antenatal care; maternal immunizations including tetanus and diphtheria toxoid; micronutrient supplements including iron, folic acid, calcium and iodine; anti-helminthic medicines; oral health services; PhilHealth enrollment; ready-to-use supplementary food for nutritionally at-risk mothers; maternity protection during pregnancy |
| Birth and postpartum | Adherence to the couple’s birth, breastfeeding and rooming-in plans; identification of high-risk newborns, the premature, small for gestational age and low birth weight; PhilHealth benefit packages for maternal care; lactation management to support exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months; non-separation of mother and newborn |
| Newborn, 28 days | Skin-to-skin contact for full-term babies and kangaroo mother care for small babies; eye prophylaxis, Vitamin K and immunizations; newborn screening and newborn hearing screening; PhilHealth packages for the newborn; human milk pasteurizer at level 2 and level 3 facilities with neonatal intensive care; prompt birth registration |
| First 180 days | Continuous support for exclusive breastfeeding; timely immunization integrated with growth monitoring and feeding counselling; growth monitoring of all infants under 6 months |
| 6 months to 2 years | Complementary food with continued breastfeeding; dietary supplementation; routine immunizations per latest DOH guidelines; micronutrient supplements; fluoride varnish; anti-helminthic tablets for children 1 to 2 years old; support for home kitchen gardens |
Immunization appears at 4 of those stages. It is not a separate programme bolted on; it is written into the continuum. The mandatory immunization guide covers the statute that makes those shots free and mandatory, and the newborn screening guide covers the test Section 8(d) requires in the newborn period.
The stage most people miss
Section 9 reaches before pregnancy. It covers adolescent females 10 to 18 years old at facility, school and community levels, on the reasoning that malnutrition is cyclical and starts a generation early.
| For adolescent females 10 to 18 | Section 9 |
|---|---|
| Assessment of health and nutrition status, and ready-to-use supplementary or therapeutic food for those at risk | (a) |
| Age-appropriate immunizations per latest DOH guidelines | (b) |
| Oral health services including assessment | (c) |
| Anti-helminthic drugs for deworming | (d) |
| Micronutrient supplements, in partnership with DepEd | (f) |
| Referral to manage menstruation irregularities contributing to anemia and blood loss | (h) |
Where you claim it
Not at a national office.
It shall be implemented at the barangay level through the rural health units and/or barangay health centers, in coordination with the Sangguniang Barangay.
Section 7. Barangay Nutrition Scholars and Barangay Health Workers are the people who deliver it, and Section 12 requires DOH and the NNC to train them.
Disasters, and the rule about donated formula
Section 11 prioritises disaster-affected areas and mandates immediate emergency food supplies for pregnant and lactating mothers and children 0 to 2 years old. It then does something unusual for a nutrition law:
Donations of milk formula, breastmilk substitutes, and/or products covered by the Milk Code without the approval of the Inter-Agency Committee created under Executive Order No. 51, Series of 1986, shall be prohibited.
Private donations are still allowed in an emergency, but only from donors with no conflict of interest and not involved in the manufacture, marketing or sale of products within the Milk Code’s scope.
Who runs it
Section 13 puts the National Nutrition Council Governing Board in charge, chaired ex officio by the Secretary of Health, with the Secretaries of the DA and DILG as Vice Chairpersons and 7 other department Secretaries sitting: DepEd, DSWD, DTI, DOLE, DOST, DBM and NEDA.
3 private sector representatives are appointed by the President for 2-year terms. Anyone with a conflict of interest as described in Executive Order No. 51 is barred. A Secretary may send a representative, but no lower than Assistant Secretary.
Section 16 lets government sidestep the ordinary rules of RA 9184, the Government Procurement Reform Act, with a liberalized mode of procurement subject to the Government Procurement Policy Board, prioritising local and community-based producers.
What this page does not cover
RA 11148 publishes no peso amounts, no fee schedule, and no quantity per beneficiary for any supplement or food item. It also sets no waiting time and no application form, because the services are delivered through the barangay rather than applied for centrally. None of those is stated here.
The Act required the implementing rules within 90 days of effectivity, and those rules, along with DOH and NNC issuances, govern how each service is actually rationed.
Related
The mandatory immunization guide covers the vaccines this Act refers to at four separate stages, the newborn screening guide covers the heel-prick test in the newborn period, and the 4Ps guide covers the conditional cash transfer whose health conditions run alongside this one. The ECCD law guide covers the day care and child development system that picks the child up from age 2.
Frequently asked questions
- What are the first 1,000 days?
- Pregnancy plus the first two years. RA 11148 defines a prenatal period of 270 days in Section 8(a) and covers children up to 24 months in Section 5. Adding the 270 prenatal days to roughly 730 days of the first two years is what produces the figure of 1,000. That addition is arithmetic on the Act, not a sentence in it.
- Who is covered?
- Section 5 covers those who are nutritionally-at-risk, especially pregnant and lactating women, particularly teenage mothers, women of reproductive age, adolescent girls, and all Filipino children who are newly born up to age 24 months.
- Where do I claim these services?
- At the barangay. Section 7 provides that the Act is implemented at the barangay level through the rural health units and barangay health centers, in coordination with the Sangguniang Barangay, with Barangay Nutrition Scholars and Barangay Health Workers mobilised to carry it out.
- Does it cover vaccines?
- Yes, at four separate stages. Maternal immunizations including tetanus and diphtheria toxoid during the prenatal period, routine immunizations in the newborn period, timely immunization services in the first 6 months, and routine immunizations from 6 months to 2 years based on the latest DOH guidelines.
- Does it cover adolescent girls?
- Section 9 does, for females 10 to 18 years old, at facility, school and community levels. It includes age-appropriate immunizations, oral health services, anti-helminthic drugs for deworming, and micronutrient supplements in partnership with DepEd.
- What does it say about lactation at work?
- Section 8(c) requires lactation breaks for women in workplaces including micro, small and medium enterprises, and lactation stations in workplaces both government and private, in public places and in public means of transportation, as stipulated in RA 10028.
- What happens after a typhoon or disaster?
- Section 11 mandates immediate emergency services and food supplies for pregnant and lactating mothers and children from 0 to 2 years old, and prohibits donations of milk formula, breastmilk substitutes and products covered by the Milk Code without approval of the Inter-Agency Committee under Executive Order No. 51.
- Is there a penalty if an LGU does not deliver?
- None in the Act. RA 11148 has 22 sections and no penalty clause. It works through mandate, appropriation and the NNC Governing Board's coordinating power rather than through sanctions.