In one maternity ward, partners were allowed into the delivery room; in another, they weren’t even allowed in the ward; and some women ended up giving birth in shared rooms, with no privacy at all.

But things are changing: women will have the legal right to a support person during labor and delivery, thanks to a bill introduced by USR Senator Ruxandra Cibu Deaconu (pictured below), which also strengthens patients’ rights to privacy and dignity.

The support person can be a partner, a friend, a mother, or any other person chosen to be by their side during these moments.

 “The bill emerged from the debate on obstetric violence that we organized in Parliament, from the stories of women who went through childbirth alone, frightened, and without being asked anything. We started with their stories and, step by step, arrived at a bill passed by all parties in the committees,” says Senator Ruxandra Cibu Deaconu.

The legislative initiative was sparked by the testimonies of women who participated in a debate on obstetric violence. They described feeling frightened, vulnerable, and unsupported during labor and childbirth. Among the issues raised were a lack of privacy and the refusal of some maternity wards to allow a loved one to be present.

According to the provisions adopted, public and private hospitals will be required to take the necessary organizational and technical measures to protect patients’ privacy. These measures include adequate visual separation of the spaces where labor and delivery take place. The legislative initiative was proposed by USR Senator Ruxandra Cibu Deaconu and aims to protect women’s dignity, privacy, and right to a private life during pregnancy, labor, childbirth, and until discharge.

In what situations may the presence of a support person be denied

The right to a support person is not limited to the moment of birth itself. A woman may request the presence of a trusted person as early as during labor, including when she is transferred between departments within the same medical facility. However, the law also provides for exceptions. According to the adopted text, a companion’s access may be restricted when there are objective medical or epidemiological reasons related to the safety of the mother, the newborn, the medical staff, or other hospitalized patients. Consequently, the maternity ward will not be able to refuse the presence of a companion solely on the basis of its own administrative rules. Any restriction must be justified by objective reasons related to medical or epidemiological safety.

“From now on, every woman will be able to have the person of her choice by her side during childbirth, and no maternity ward will be able to refuse this request out of convenience or due to a lack of space. The bill now only needs to be signed into law,” added Senator Ruxandra Cibu Deaconu, the sponsor of this bill.

After being adopted by the Senate with an overwhelming majority of votes, the initiative received a unanimous recommendation for approval from the Chamber of Deputies’ Committee on Health and Family. Following the vote in the Chamber of Deputies, USR Senator Ruxandra Cibu Deaconu issued a statement emphasizing the importance of passing the bill. “No mother in Romania should ever have to give birth alone again. Today, something extraordinarily rare happened in this Parliament: all parties voted the same way. 262 votes in favor, none against,” she wrote on Facebook.

The bill was passed on Wednesday, October 14, by the Chamber of Deputies, as the decision-making body, and is set to be sent to the President for promulgation.

Compiled and translated by Daniela Draghici