‘1 of 10 medicines in RP is fake’

MANILA, Philippines –  Based on Department of Health (DOH) figures, 10% or 1 of every 10 medicines in the country is fake, according to the Samahan Laban sa Pekeng Gamot (Samahan).

“Consumers unwittingly buy from drug stores with counterfeit medicines. If that patient dies, no one will be going to report anymore because the patient is already dead,” said Dr. Maria Minerva Calimag, Samahan spokesman and chair of the Cosmetics Committee of the Philippine Medical Association (PMA).

Calimag said fake medicines should be flushed out immediately from market.

She said the true extent of the counterfeiting problem is “hidden” and that the 10% estimate is based only on cases reported to the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA).

“From the point of view of the PMA, we strongly recommend that we buy only from Food and Drugs Administration-listed pharmacy. Source is important. As doctors we do our diagnosis, and then we depend on medicines to work,” she added.

Samahan raised the warning against fake drugs as the nation celebrates this month the “National Consciousness Week against Fake Medicines” as mandated under Presidential Proclamation No. 2082.

The federation comprises the FDA, the Philippine Medical Association, the Philippine Pharmacists Association (PPA), and the Drug Stores Association of the Philippines, among others.

Multibillion-dollar illicit trade

The international sources of fake medicines are China, India, and Pakistan, Samahan said in its Web site.

The local sources are found in Manila, Cebu, Aurora, Bataan, Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, Pampanga, Tarlac, Zambales, Batangas, Cavite, Laguna, Rizal, and Quezon.

The country’s pharmaceutical industry is a P112 billion business.

PPA president Leonila Ocampo said the business from counterfeit medicines “go to as high as US $75 billion” worldwide.

“The proliferation of fake medicines in Asia is quite high. We really take this seriously as our advocacy in as much as pharmacists we all know are the very people who can get their medicines very easily,” Ocampo said.

To detect counterfeit drugs, Calimag has advised consumers to “first carefully check the label on the medicine and in the packaging to avoid purchasing the fake ones.”

“Check the color, the texture, and if possible, the taste of the medicine. Beware also if the packaging is different and if the price is significantly or unusually low,” she said. “It is equally critical to buy only from FDA-licensed pharmacy,” she added.

Health hazard

Calimag said fake medicines are hazardous to health because they “are neither tested nor approved, [and] may contain toxic, unlisted, and substandard ingredients.”

Counterfeit products pertain to those sold under established product name without proper authorization, or those with insufficient, excess, or wrong active ingredients.

Julie Marquez, external vice-president of the Drugstores Association of the Philippines, said they have monitored some cases of locally made fake drugs but most are smuggled.  The group immediately refers such cases to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency.

“Ine-expel namin ang kahit sinong drugstore na magiging involved sa pagbebenta ng fake drugs” Marquez warned.

She said they have a total of 5,000 members in their organization but so far, no one from their association has been caught selling fake drugs.

ABS-CBN News visited some pharmacies in Pasig City, like Botica Santa Ana and Rainforest drugstore near the Rizal Medical Center.

Drug store officials said they monitor their products daily. The pharmacies have sections where items that are about to expire are placed and set aside to avoid confusion.

Still alarming

FDA officer-in-charge Florita Descallar Moraleja said that even if there are only a few reported cases of fake drugs being sold in the market, the illegal trade is still alarming since fake drugs can worsen the sickness of a person and can even lead to death.

According to the FDA, some of the physical differences between fake and genuine medicines are:

* Fake drugs’ labels are not clear and can be erased;
* Some, like for paracetamol, fake ones have a lighter color compared to the real one;
* Fake paracetamol become powdery, compared to the original that has a solid content;
* Fake capsules have dark spots;
* The middle part fake medical pills is not straight.

According to the FDA, out of 25,694 registered drugs being sold in the country, only 37 were found to be fake.

“We have already filed cases [against] 46 companies selling fake drugs found in areas in Metro Manila like Muntinlupa, Pasay and Quezon City,” Moraleja said.

The cases are still ongoing.   –Zyann Ambrosio, ABS-CBN News