Palace warns hospitals raising fees due to cheaper drug law

MANILA, Philippines – Malacañang said yesterday private hospitals that will raise fees to cope with the cost of the implementation of the Cheaper Medicines Law could face sanctions.

Deputy presidential spokesperson Gary Olivar said hospitals should “behave responsibly on this matter” since they are aware of the implications of the law.

“After all, the price increase in drugs was simply a one-time hit on their drug inventory, which was probably cushioned by the other cash flows and maybe even their inventory accounting policies,” he said.

Some hospitals that belong to the Private Hospitals Association of the Philippines have announced they would be raising their fees in order to cover for the losses they will incur with the implementation of the Cheaper Medicines Law.

They claimed that the law, which brought down the prices of 21 types of medicines by half, will have a major impact on their bottom line because they would have to sell the drugs at prices way below their purchase price.

Deputy presidential spokesperson Anthony Golez said the reason cited by the hospitals is enough to merit a hike in fees.

Golez said not all of the medicines being sold by the hospitals were outright purchases and a lot of these were being sold on consignment basis.

“It’s not like they stockpile on medicines good for 25 years,” Golez said, referring to the inventory of the hospitals.

However, Golez said he is willing to accept that hospitals may have to recover the cost of other services and supplies.

“It’s not just the Cheaper Medicines Law. So I think it has to be looked into more deeply and the government must be responsive also to the needs of the hospitals but at the same time the hospital owners or administrators must also be sensitive to the plight of our citizens,” Golez said.

He said the Palace would leave it up to the DOH to decide on what it must do to address the concerns of the hospitals and their threat to hike their fees. –Marvin Sy (The Philippine Star)