An independent health reform advocate has called for immediate action amid reports of alleged pharmaceutical companies' use of privileged marketing tactics to influence medical professionals in promoting medical products.

In an interview with TeleRadyo Serbisyo on Tuesday, April 23, Dr. Anthony Leachon said pharmaceutical companies recruit doctors and set “millions” of quota, in exchange for “luxury car, condo renovations, and more.”

"At 'pag nagrecruit ka, may pyramiding scheme pa. ‘Pag nagrecruit ka, may commission ka pa (And when you recruit, there's even a pyramiding scheme. When you recruit, you still get commissions)," he added.

Leachon said he spoke with 10 doctors who confirmed the prevalence of these practices.

He said these conventions in the past were not characterized by the current practices, which primarily focused on education rather than incentives and recruitment tactics.

"Iba na ang kalakaran ngayon, at ito ay local generic company at hindi multinationals (The situation is different now, and it's the local generic company doing this, not the multinationals)," Leachon said.

Leachon stressed that the issue with such practices is persistent, underscoring the urgency for intervention and reform.

"Ang self-regulation ay mayroon ang bawat medical organization base sa kanilang code of ethics, hindi na ito aandar sa panahon ngayon (Each medical organization has self-regulation based on their code of ethics, but this is not effective in today's times)," he said.

"Kasi sa panahon ngayon, binibili ang doktor para ireseta ang kanilang produkto in exchange for the luxurious car or whatever na ibibigay sa kanila tapos kawawa ang pasyenteng bibigyan (Because nowadays, doctors are being bought to prescribe their product in exchange for luxurious cars or whatever they offer, and it's the patients who suffer)," Leachon highlighted.

Moreover, Leachon expressed concerns about the impact on patient care.

He warned of unnecessary prescriptions, compromised product quality, and increased patient expenses resulting from these practices.

"Nagrereseta ka ng hindi kailangan, hindi mo alam ang kalidad ng produkto, pangatlo, lolobo ang gastos ng pasyente dahil gagasto ito ng hindi naman pala kailangan (Secondly, you don't know the quality of the product, thirdly, the patient's expenses will increase because they'll spend on something they don't actually need)," he said.

In addition, according to Leachon's sources, drugs from this generic company are reported to be expensive, raising concerns about accessibility and affordability for patients.

"Diba 'pag nagreseta ka dapat ang isusulat mo ay generic products by generic law, dito ay hindi, ang isusulat nila ay ang brand ng produkto na ito para 'pag punta ng pasyente sa mga drug store ay ito ang ibibigay sa kanila (Isn't it that when you prescribe, you should write down generic products by generic law, but here, they don't do that; they write down the brand of this product so that when the patient goes to the drugstore, that's what they'll be given)," he explained.

Calling for immediate action, Leachon demanded a thorough investigation into the matter.

He urged authorities to hold both the implicated drug companies and complicit doctors accountable, advocating for stringent penalties including tax examination.

RELATED STORY: https://mb.com.ph/2024/4/22/doh-warns-against-pharmaceutical-companies-tempting-medical-professionals