Solon accuses big pharma group of misinformation, hypocrisy

AKBAYAN Rep. Risa Hontiveros chided today the Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Association of the Philippines (PHAP) for claiming that a bill amending the Intellectual Property Code to lower the cost of medicine would be more detrimental. "Claiming that the bill 'could open the floodgates to fake drugs' is grossly misleading. The entrance of fake drugs is a different issue altogether. What they want to do is to demonize cheaper medicines acquired through parallel importation," Rep. Hontiveros said.

"To say that lowering the price of medicines would be harmful is to ignore the fact that the high cost of drugs is killing many Filipinos," Rep. Hontiveros said. "Lower the price of essential medicines, and we will at least have greater chances of combating diseases and illnesses that are already preventable and treatable."

The solon, who is one of the principal authors of the bill amending the Intellectual Property Code (HB 6305), also corrected the image that big pharmacies are trying to create. "Branded medicines are more expensive not because big pharmaceuticals are spending more resources for safeguards and quality control. Much of the cost actually goes to marketing: the money they spend for advertising and the perks that they give to doctors to encourage them to prescribe branded products," Rep. Hontiveros said.

She also accused PHAP of hypocrisy. "Big pharmas are abusing the flaws of our patents law. They commit evergreening by indiscriminately applying for several patents for one product to extend its protection. They are now using their propaganda machinery to block the passage of a bill that would boost our own healthcare programs. They are concerned that this would curb profiteering in the industry," she said.

The solon added that imported drugs will have to go through the Bureau of Food and Drugs for quality control. She said that the entrance of fake medicines in the country is a different issue altogether, and should be addressed by strengthening BFAD and customs regulations. "Imported or not, we are obliged to check the quality of all medicines being sold to the public," according to the solon.

Yesterday, Rep. Hontiveros urged the House of Representatives to act of HB 6305, which has already been certified as urgent by Malacañang. She said that it's one of the social reform bills that Congress must prioritize before the session adjourns for start of the campaign period.