[av_one_full first min_height=” vertical_alignment=” space=” custom_margin=” margin=’0px’ padding=’0px’ border=” border_color=” radius=’0px’ background_color=” src=” background_position=’top left’ background_repeat=’no-repeat’ animation=”]
[av_heading heading=’Solon pushes for drug price regulatory board’ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=” subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=”]
BY ADRIAN STEWART CO
[/av_heading]
[av_textblock size=” font_color=’custom’ color=’#0a0a0a’]
Thursday, February 23, 2017
[/av_textblock]
[av_textblock size=” font_color=’custom’ color=’#0a0a0a’]
MANILA – Rep. Ferjenel Biron (4th District, Iloilo) called for the creation of a medicine price regulatory board following his “discovery” that the Cheaper Medicines Act was not being carried out well.
Under House Bill No. 3252, the board comprising seven Department of Health (DOH) members shall ensure the law’s rightful enforcement.
“We have discovered that the DOH has miserably failed in implementing the law,” he said. “The failure is really [on the inclusion of] a good number of pharmaceutical formulations to be covered by the mandatory regulation.”
“The creation of the price regulatory board on medicines is the most effective way to quicken up the inclusion of more medicines in the mandatory drug retail price,” said Biron, chairman of the House trade and industry committee.
Biron believes the board may “efficiently monitor, review and push for the inclusion” of more drugs and medicines into those subject to price regulation.
Under Republic Act (RA) 9502, or the Universal and Quality Medicines Act of 2008, the president has the power to regulate drug and medicine prices upon the recommendation of the DOH secretary.
“But this power has apparently not been used by either past presidents or Health secretaries, which is one of the many reasons why to date we have not updated the list of drugs and medicines for price regulation,” said Biron.
Nine years since it was passed, the Act has “not yet fully attained its core objective of giving accessible medicines to all,” he said.
“As principal author of RA 9502, I believe our duty does not end after the bill has been signed into law,” said Biron. “It is a matter of personal commitment on my part to see to it that it will actually redound to the benefit of the Filipino people.”/PN
[/av_textblock]
[/av_one_full]
