A majority of the bicameral committee tackling the proposed Cheaper Medicines Act have approved of the measure's enactment into law, Sen. Manuel "Mar" Roxas II said Tuesday.Roxas said that as of late Monday night, 10 out of the 14 members of the House contingent have already signed the bicameral rep

A majority of the bicameral committee tackling the proposed Cheaper Medicines Act have approved of the measure's enactment into law, Sen. Manuel "Mar" Roxas II said Tuesday.

Roxas said that as of late Monday night, 10 out of the 14 members of the House contingent have already signed the bicameral report on the Cheaper Medicines Act.

"In the Senate [contingent], three out of three, Senator Juan Ponce Enrile, Senator Pia Cayetano and myself have already signed it as well," Roxas told ABS-CBN's morning show, "Umagang Kay Ganda."

Roxas, however, said he should not be congratulated for the impending passage of the measure. "The congratulations belong to the people. We fought for it for 10 years."

The senator denied that President Arroyo's recent call to Congress to pass a cheaper medicines law hastened the approval of his version of the proposed measure.

"We were at a standstill at the bicam for four months," he said, adding that the House contingent's decision to drop the generics only provision paved the way for the bill's approval.

He said the Senate insisted on dropping the generics-only provision, which he said takes away doctors' authority to recommend appropriate medicines to patients.

The senator said doctors’ expertise should not be disregarded by Congress. "Doctors know the best medicine to recommend. Doctors know the medical history of the patients."

Roxas also cited that the constitution already provides the Generics Law, which, he said, is enough to assure that poor patients will not be prevented from buying cheaper medicines.

Last-ditch effort

The senator said that just recently, pharmaceutical giants in the US wrote to the Philippine government through the United States Trade Representative and threatened to retaliate if the Cheaper Medicines Act is approved by Congress.

On Monday, Roxas cast doubt on House Speaker Prospero Nograles's motive in deferring the bill's approval.

"Is this the last card of the pharmaceutical lobby? Because for them it’s better not to have a cheaper medicines bill," Roxas said.

Nograles had announced that he would recommend the deferment of the House’s ratification of the bicameral conference committee report on the proposed medicine law.

Nograles said he would push for the ratification of the law if he is "personally satisfied that the law will guarantee cheaper cost of medicines."

"We have to carefully balance the things that are at stake in this proposed Cheaper Medicines Law. For one, we have to get the full assurance that if this is passed into law, it will really bring down the cost of medicines," Nograles said in a statement released on Sunday.

He added: "If we cannot get this assurance, I think that it will be best to defer its ratification because I don't see the point of passing a law that will not really serve its purpose."

What's wrong with clear accountability?

Roxas said some congressmen oppose the Senate version of the bill because of its price regulation provision, where the President and the Secretary of the Department of Health are given the power to control the prices of medicines in the country.

The senator said contrary to the Senate version, the House wanted the price regulation powers given to a "faceless, nameless" board.

"I prefer a law where there is clear accountability rather than a board that is nameless, faceless and points fingers at other board members. What’s wrong with transparency? What’s wrong with clear accountability," he said.

Roxas said he cannot see the logic in questioning a proposal that grants President Arroyo the power to control the prices of medicine.

He added that even Mrs. Arroyo, who has the support of the House majority, supports the Senate version.

"There were no more obstacles to this. Now out of the blue, there’s another set of concerns being raised," he said.

Roxas said that he had talked with Makati City Rep. Teodoro Locsin over the phone on Monday and the congressman told him majority of House members are ready to sign the bicameral committee report.

Roxas said the Senate will finish signing the committee report on the Cheaper Medicines Act on Monday afternoon.

Nograles said Sunday that the House contingent would have to defer the signing of the committee report as he was scheduled to attend on Monday the signing of the University of the Philippines new charter in Cebu.

He said the approval of the committee report would have to wait until Tuesday or Monday.

The speaker said he would also take a chance to talk to Mrs. Arroyo and Senate President Manuel Villar "and get their sense on the controversies" regarding the pending Cheaper Medicines Act.