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THE
Senate on Monday unanimously ratified a bicameral
committee report on the final version of the proposed
Affordable Medicines Act at Tuesday’s session, paving
the way for its submission to Malacañang for early
enactment into law and immediate implementation so
consumers could buy costly medication at lower prices.
Sen. Mar
Roxas II, its principal sponsor, confirmed that the bill
was approved in the midst of a strong pharmaceutical
lobby and renewed threats of retaliation from American
trade representatives who previously pressured
Philippine officials against enacting a
cheaper-medicines law that would cut huge profits of
multinational drug companies.
The
House of Representatives also ratified the bicameral
report on Affordable Medicines Act. Leading members of
the House bicameral panel, notably PDP-Laban Rep.
Teodoro Locsin Jr., had held long, sometimes heated,
deliberations with the Senate panel over two
provisions—the “generics only” item and the creation of
a price-regulatory board.
The
consumer group Cut the Cost, Cut the Pain Network
(3CPNet) lauded the legislators for passing the bill
that will pave the way for affordable and quality
lifesaving medicines for the people.
“The
public health interest prevailed over the profit
interests of big pharmaceutical companies that tried to
derail the passage of the law since Day One. The final
bill may still lack some of the measures that will
ultimately provide the consumers with lower cost but of
the same quality of generic medicines and Congress can
persevere to pass the other measures in the future,”
said Edeliza Hernandez, coconvenor of 3CPNet.
She said
her group will propose to Congress other legislative
measures including the Generics Act amendments to ensure
that the public-health safeguards contained in the
Cheaper Medicines Act will bring ultimate benefit to
poor patients.
“Sampung
taon na nating isinulong ito [affordable medicine
bill], ipinaglaban ito at nilabanan ang mga
multinational companies, finile-an tayo ng kaso.
Hanggang sa ngayon they’re harassing us. Sumulat
sila through the US Trade Representatives sa
ating gobyerno na pag napasa ito, babawi sila sa iba
pang mga paraan. Pero nandito na tayo at isusulong natin
ito,” Roxas said.
According to Roxas, “these threats from the US
pharmaceutical companies are continuing.”
He added
that these
US
companies apparently fear that the new law will increase
their competition and bring in “much cheaper competing
products both from parallel importation and from the
domestic generics industry.”
In
sponsoring the ratification of the final version of the
bill, Roxas explained that the remedial legislation
provides for increased competition even as it ensures
quality of medicine at affordable prices.
He added
that the measure also contained provisions for price
monitoring and control mechanism to check unreasonable
cost adjustments. |
