[Ip-health] Philippines Congress ratifies cheaper medicines bill

[Rohit Malpani]

This is a multi-part message in MIME format.
--
[ Picked text/plain from multipart/alternative ]
Congress ratifies cheaper medicines bill

By Maila Ager, Veronica Uy
INQUIRER.net



MANILA, Philippines -- Congress has ratified the bill that seeks to lower t=
he prices of medicines in the country.

The bill will now be transmitted to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo for s=
igning.

Immediately after the calling of the roll Tuesday, Deputy Majority Floor Le=
ader Neptali Gonzales moved for the ratification of the bicameral conferenc=
e report on the proposed Cheaper Medicines Act.

But Bayan Muna Representative Teodoro Casi=F1o stood up and asked that he b=
e given at least 10 minutes to read the contents of the report, prompting G=
onzales to withdraw his motion. The motion was later reinstated and carried=
.

Earlier in the day, the Senate adopted the bicameral committee report that =
would, among others, allow the parallel importation of patented medicines f=
rom other countries where these were more affordable.

Senator Manuel "Mar" Roxas II said that it took lawmakers three years, hund=
reds of hours spent on committee hearings and technical working group meeti=
ngs, and four months of bicameral committee discussions, to finalize the bi=
ll.

Roxas, principal author of the Senate version of the bill and co-chairman o=
f the bicameral conference committee, said he was happy that "at last, it's=
 done, but the work isn't over."

He recalled that he was sued by a major pharmaceutical company when he was =
trade and industry secretary for bringing in affordable medicines from abro=
ad.

"Even then, there was a great deal of pressure for the government not to co=
mpete with these drug companies. Now that the law is passed, not just the g=
overnment but even the private sector can import drugs or medicines from an=
other country as long as they comply with the guidelines to be set by the B=
ureau of Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Health," he sai=
d.

The senator said legislation to strengthen the generics industry will also =
be part of his agenda. "We need to put together a long-term plan to help an=
d support our generics industry," he added.

The law, officially the "Universally Accessible Cheaper and Quality Medicin=
es Act of 2008," seeks to:

* prohibit the grant of new patents based only on newly-discovered uses of =
a known drug substance;
* allow local generics firms to test, produce and register their generic ve=
rsions of patented drugs, so these can be sold right upon patent expiry ("e=
arly working principle");
* allow the government use of patented drugs when the public interest is at=
 stake;
* give the President the power to price ceilings on various drugs, upon the=
 recommendation of the Secretary of Health. These drugs include those for c=
hronic illnesses, for prevention of diseases, and those in the Philippine N=
ational Drug Formulary (PNDF) Essential Drug List;
* strengthen the BFAD so that it could ensure the safety of medicines, by a=
llowing it to retain its revenues for upgrading of its facilities, equipmen=
t and human resources; and
* ensure the availability of affordable medicines by requiring drug outlets=
 to carry a variety of brands for each drug, including those sourced from "=
parallel importation," to give the consumer more choices.

He thanked his bicameral committee co-chairman, Representative Antonio Alva=
rez, and the other members of the panel for signing the report.

"We may have had our differences but it was all worth it because the final =
version of this vital health measure is really a product of vigorous debate=
 and comprehensive study," he said.

As of Monday night, 11 members of the House panel had signed the bicameral =
conference report.

Senator Pia Cayetano, who chairs the health committee and member of the Sen=
ate panel, signed the bicameral conference report Monday night.

This Tuesday morning, the report was signed by Senator Juan Ponce Enrile, a=
 member of the Senate contingent to the bicameral conference committee.

Roxas was the third and last of the Senate panel to affix his signature to =
the measure.

The senator said that with the passage of the law, the next step would be t=
o call for an Affordable Medicines Summit with all sectors represented wher=
e a concrete implementation plan can be forged, and "to convene and activat=
e a congressional oversight committee to make sure that the good intentions=
 of this new law are indeed carried out."

Roxas said he would also look into how government and provincial hospitals =
could import modern equipment for poor patients at less cost.