Natural childbirth state order costs revised to reduce caesarean  sections

ArmInfo. In Armenia, the costs of the state order allocated for natural childbirth have been  revised for the first time since 2008.  In this regard, the Ministry  has developed and approved a new program aimed at reducing the  prevalence of caesarean sections.

Within the framework of this program, epidural anesthesia during natural childbirth has been made  entirely free.  According to the new procedure of the Ministry of  Health, woman who has already undergone one caesarean section can  request to give birth to a second child naturally after the  assessment of the doctor. In compliance with the Minister's  directive, financial support for obstetric assistance has been  increased in this instance.

It should be noted that the Ministry of Health reported earlier that  over the past 10 years in Armenia the number of births by caesarean  section has increased. According to the latest data, these operations  account for 37.7% of the total number of births in the country.   According to the RA Statistical Committee, 18,632 children were born  in Armenia from January to July 2024, which is 7.6% lower than the  previous year.  The birth rate per 1,000 inhabitants for the  reporting period was 10.6 per mille, compared to 11.8 per mille in  2023.