The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) said it is working with the Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Association of the Philippines (PHAP), to stop the sale and circulation of fake medicines in the country, following comments from the United States Trade Representative's (USTR) Special 301 Watch List report.
The Philippines has been out of the USTR's Watch List for 11 consecutive years, but the report remained to flag the country as a source of counterfeit pharmaceuticals among other issues.
In a press conference at the sidelines of the Gawad Yamang Isip Awards on April 29, IPOPHL Director General Rowel Barba remarked that this has been a long-standing problem, wherein "as far as the Philippines is concerned, we have nearly no manufacturing of medicines." Barba also said there is no report of manufacturers of counterfeit medication in the country, as per their coordination with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
"Ang duda namin, nagiging transhipment point ang Philippines to the US. Iyon ang palagi namin sinasagot sa kanila, and yet hindi matanggal (We think the Philippines is being used as a transhipment point to the US. That's what we always tell them, and yet their concern remains)," he explained.
This time, Barba said they will tap the private sector alongside their existing collaboration with the FDA to resolve the issue.
"We just have to coordinate mostly with the PHAP to get data from them or information on those manufacturing fake medicines. Hopefully, we are able to remove them," he said.
"With PHAP, we're still working on the program for the next two years. Definitely, we will include that, especially on counterfeiting since those are medicines. It endangers lives. We will concentrate more on that in the coming months," he added.
Barba noted that the common fake medicines being reported, citing the FDA, are over-the-counter medications like fake biogesic pills, and others that can be sold in barangays.
They have not yet identified the source of these products, but he said they are sure it is not in the Philippines.
IPOPHL have also established ties with online platforms like Meta and popular e-commerce sites like Lazada, Shopee, and Tiktok to coordinate complaints on retailers selling counterfeit goods online.
With the soon-to-be released implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of the Internet Transactions Act (ITA), Barba said that IPOPHL will be able to conduct further site blocking mechanisms in partnership with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), alongside their voluntary site blocking system with telco partners like PLDT Inc. and Globe Telecom Inc.
In order to help consumer awareness, Barba said IPOPHL is encouraging more pharmaceutical companies to share information and use their expertise to inform the public on the original and fake medicines.
"In fact, even our law enforcers have difficulty identifying the medication, that's why we continue to work with brand owners for product identification and workshops," he added.
As for consumers, he urged the public to only buy in reputable places or drug stores to ensure the medicine purchased are original.