Between January and September, expenditure on maternity and minimal health care support reached €2,447 million, showing a rise of 12.7 percent from the same period last year according to the latest figures.
Data released by the Department of Inclusion on Friday indicates that a total of 354,618 maternity and care benefits were processed during the first nine months of 2022, reflecting a 1.8 percent increase compared with the same interval in 2021.
Of that total, 168,286 benefits were attributed to the first parent, typically the mother, while 186,332 applied to the second parent, typically the father.
Maternity and childcare allowances replaced the former maternity and paternity benefits, taking effect on January 1, 2021, and establishing equal rights for both parents.
Today, the leave stands at 16 weeks for each parent and is recognized as an individual, inalienable right.
The largest numbers of financial support for the birth and care of minors were observed in the autonomous communities of Andalusia with 63,799 cases, Catalonia with 63,338, Madrid with 59,736, and the Community of Valencia with 36,041.
Additionally, the number of leaves granted for the care of children, foster children, or family members who required leave in the first half of the year totaled 36,801. Among these, 31,712 were allocated to women, 86.2 percent to men, and 5,089 to other family members, equating to 13.8 percent of the total.
Overall, the count of authorized permits showed a decline of 9.8 percent on average when compared with the same period in 2021.