Anakalusugan Representative Mike Defensor on Friday, April 16, questioned anew the Department of Health (DOH) for its supposed "bias" for two "costly" investigational coronavirus medications over what he described as "inexpensive wonder drug" Ivermectin.
(MANILA BULLETIN FILE PHOTO)
“The DOH continues to spend hundreds of millions, maybe billions, of pesos to buy remdesivir and tocilizumab, not to mention the purchases of private hospitals,” Defensor said in a statement.
He cited the recent statement of treatment czar and DOH Undersecretary Leopoldo Vega that new imported stocks of the two therapeutic products were due to arrive in the Philippines to replenish its dwindling supply.
Defensor, however, said remdesivir costs P28,000 for two shots daily to be taken for about three to five days, while tocilizumab costs about $2,000.
In contrast, he said Ivermectin, which is also considered as an investigational drug for COVID-19, costs only P35 per tablet.
Defensor stressed that while Philhealth that shoulders the price of remdesivir and tocilizumab for DOH hospitals, the cost for private hospitals “is borne by desperate private citizens who try to save their sick loved ones."
He insisted that Ivermectin is listed in the World Health Organization (WHO), the Philippine Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the US FDA's list of essential drugs.
“It is considered a wonder drug, along with penicillin and aspirin. It is one of the safest, with a testimony spanning 40 years. It has a 3.7 billion dosage on record,” Defensor reiterated.
Defensor has been pushing for the use of ivermectin for COVID-19 treatment and prevention, saying it also helped in his recovery from the coronavirus infection last month.
At present, ivermectin is registered as an anti-parasitic drug for animals. Health authorities have warned against its use for COVID-19 treatment and prevention as clinical studies have yet to prove its efficacy as an anti-viral medication for humans.
The DOH already denied last April 5 that it or its officials are benefitting from the use of remdesivir and tocilizumab. It also maintained that the use of the drugs were based on WHO Solidarity Trials and are only for severe and critical COVID-19 cases.
Recently, the FDA allowed the compassionate use of ivermectin for COVID-19 patients in some hospitals.