Philippines challenged to raise acceptability of generic drugs

Some 19 years after the enactment of the Generics Act
of 1988 aimed at bringing down the prices of
medicines, generic drugs are still not as widely
prescribed by medical practitioners and used by the
general public as compared to branded medicines.

This was admitted today by Senate Minority Leader
Aquilino Q. Pimentel, Jr., principal author of the
Generics Act (Republic Act 6675), as he said “we have
yet to fully realize and completely accomplish the
mandate of the Generics Act.”

Pimentel said this law was envisioned to be the vital
instrument in addressing the basic health needs of
Filipinos through effective, yet inexpensive and
affordable medicines.

Generic counterparts of branded drugs are far lower in
prices, he said. This is because generics are not
covered by patent protection and which are labelled
solely by their international non-proprietary or
generic names.

“However, it is a sad reality that generic drugs have
a very low acceptability to the medical practitioners
and the general public as reflected in the sales and
use,” the senator said.

He cited a report of the Philippine International
Trading Corporation that “true generics account for a
measly 4-5 percent of medicines sold in the country
while it is more than 50 percent in the United
States.”

The PITC, the state firm tasked with importing quality
but affordable drugs from India and other countries,
also reported that of around 600 drugs currently in
the essential drug list, only 200 are being made by
local companies. The other 400 off-patent drugs do not
have generic counterparts.

In an article entitled “Far from Cure” in the World
Mission Magazine, Dr. Teresa de la Cruz wrote:
“Despite higher prices, branded products continue to
be preferred by most Filipinos. Only 10 to 15 percent
of the Filipino market purchase the lower-priced
unbranded drugs. In comparison, in the United States,
as much as 40 percent of the public prefer the same
generic drug counterparts.”

By industry estimates, De la Cruz said as much as 40
percent to 60 percent of the actual chemical drug
costs can go into advertising and retailing of drug
products.

The Department of Health however cited a 2006 survey
of the Social Weather Stations showing that 55 percent
of Filipino people are buying generic drugs.

Pimentel challenged the government to intensify the
campaign to educate the people about the advantages of
shifting to generic drugs for curing ailments.

“There must be a renewed advocacy and a continuous
information campaign on generic drugs as an
alternative of equal efficacy to the more expensive
brand name drugs, and for a continuing education and
training for medical and allied medical professions on
drugs with generic names,” he said.

Pimentel noted that medicines account for as much as
40 to 45 percent of the total health expenditures of
Filipino families, which dissipates the much-needed
financial resources for other basic family needs.

He encouraged the current intervention efforts being
undertaken by the government reduce prices of
medicines including parallel drug importation and the
establishment of Botika ng Bayan and Botika ng
Barangay all over the country.
-o0o-

IMPORTANT NOTICE: INBOX is an archive of press releases, statements, announcements, letters to the editors, and manifestos sent to PinoyPress for publication. Please email your materials to pinoypress @ gmail.com. PinoyPress is not responsible for the content of these materials. The opinion expessed in these items does not reflect those of PinoyPress and its staff. Please refer to our terms of use/disclaimer.