Garin lauds SC for upholding Cheap Meds Act, patent-limit
Iloilo First District Congresswoman Janette Loreto Garin hailed the Supreme Court (SC) for upholding the recently passed Republic Act (RA) 9502 dubbed as the Cheaper Medicines Act.
Passed as the “Universally Accessible Cheaper and Quality Medicines Act of 2008,” the SC ruling maintained an earlier decision favoring a local proprietor to import drugs already patented by a large pharmaceutical company.
The “people’s victory,” the lady solon said highlighting a longtime advocacy for cheaper medicines. Garin is one of the sponsors of the Cheaper Medicines Act.
The SC ruling came after the appeal filed by Roma Drug Company against the decision of the Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Guagua, Pampanga to prosecute the said drug company.
To recall, Roma Drug Company was tried in the Guagua Regional Trial Court after its drug store in Pampanga was raided by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) in 2001. The NBI acted upon the request of Smith Kline, which complained that Roma Drug is selling medicines that were directly imported abroad instead of purchasing it through the local SmithKline, the authorized Philippine distributor of the raided products. The NBI filed a complaint arguing that Roma Drug violated the Special Law on Counterfeit Drugs (SLCD).
However, the SC ruled that the SLCD’s provision prohibiting the sale of unregistered imported drug products was already mooted with the passage of the Republic Act 9502. As such, the SC last April 16 decided to grant the petition of Roma Drug and issued a writ of prohibition to the respondents from prosecuting the owner of Roma Drug
“The Supreme Court decision on this case was exactly what we in Congress wanted when we pushed for the passage of R.A. 9502. Access to cheaper medicines cannot be fully realized if there is no limit to Patent Rights” Garin in a news release said.
The Universally Accessible Cheaper and Quality Medicines Act of 2008 provided that the owner of a patent has no right to prevent third parties from performing without his authorization.
Garin reiterated, “The ruling also sends a strong message to those who try to get around the law of the land and violate the right to quality and affordable medicines of the Filipinos just to generate more income.”
“Also, this will minimize doubts on whether we can fully enjoy the good intentions of the Cheaper Medicines bill and convey that the government is fulfilling its responsibility to defend the right to health and improved quality of life to Filipinos,” Garin added.