Council’s health panel head worries over possible abuses

The implementation of the Cheaper Medicine Law (Republic Act 9052) is seen to benefit the many less-privileged Filipinos but Councilor Christopher Alix, chairman of the Cebu City Council committee on health, is apprehensive that it might lead to the buying and selling of fake medicines.

Alix said that while he supports the new legislation, he also has reservations on its ramifications. “I am in favor of the law, however I have my reservations. I would always prefer to buy medicines that I trust and am confident in,” he said.

“We cannot control and screen suppliers. Since allowed na man nga generic medicines to be sold, there is a possibility that the people would be buying fake medicines,” Alix said, adding that multi-national companies could also be affected by the bill.

Alix said the Bureau of Food and Drugs (BFAD) should be strict in monitoring the manufacturers to ensure that the medicines they are selling are of high quality and not fake.

The councilor admitted though that the law would be very beneficial to low-income earners since it would provide them with cheaper medicine in the market.

RA 9052, or the Universally Accessible, Cheaper and Quality Medicine Act of 2008, was signed into law by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo last week.

It now allows the conduct of parallel importation of patented medicine from other countries where the prices are significantly lower than the prevailing prices in the Philippines.

Through the Philippine International Trading Corp. (PITC), the government has been conducting importation of medicine from countries such as Pakistan and India, selling these at state-run pharmacies aimed at poor communities.

Senator Manuel Roxas II, principal author of the bill in the Senate, also explained that even private groups or organizations can import medicine directly from other countries provided that they register themselves with BFAD, the agency tasked to ensure that all imported medicine is of high quality.

By directly importing the medicine, as the new law now allows, private entities would be able to save more because they would no longer go through any middlemen.  — Ghea N. Sinajon, STC MassCom intern/RAE