Health Secretary Teodora Herbosa and Senator Raffy Tulfo got into a heated discussion during a Senate hearing on Tuesday over the “junkets” supposedly sponsored by pharmaceutical companies in exchange for doctors prescribing their manufactured medicines.He questioned why public hospitals often use branded medicines for their patients, especially those who were admitted in their facilities, instead of generic medicines that are way cheaper.
But Herbosa explained that generic medicines or even anesthesia were being replaced with branded counterparts because of the latter’s efficacy. Doctors are shown “a good time” by pharmaceutical companies in seminars or their schooling abroad, the senator said, noting they get “free airfare, business class , hotel accommodation, food, entertainment, and we’re talking millions of pesos, or even dollars.”
“Sometimes a hotel in Las Vegas is occupied by doctors from different countries, including the Philippines… the doctors even receive money to be used in the casinos,” the senator said. “We are all signatory and all professionals are expected to follow it. If something like this happens, pharmaceutical firms are charged and penalized. They are penalized by their own associaton, the Philippine Association of Pharmaceutical Industry. So there is self-policing,” he added.
Philippines Latest News, Philippines Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Source: gmanews - 🏆 11. / 68 Read more »
Source: MlaStandard - 🏆 20. / 55 Read more »
Source: MlaStandard - 🏆 20. / 55 Read more »
Source: MlaStandard - 🏆 20. / 55 Read more »
Source: MlaStandard - 🏆 20. / 55 Read more »
Source: MlaStandard - 🏆 20. / 55 Read more »