The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) gave a heads-up to local government units (LGUs) to refer to the latest edition of the Drug Price Reference Index (DPRI) for their 2017 drugs and medicines procurement.
DPRI is a national drug pricing strategy to improve the efficiency of drugs and medicine procurement. It lists the ceiling prices of essential medicines for government bidding and procurement set by the Department of Health (DOH) for all national and local government health facilities and government agencies.
DILG Secretary Ismael ‘Mike’ D. Sueno said, “I call on all local chief executives (LCEs) to ensure consumer protection from overpricing as well as to facilitate access to quality and essential medicines. Health remains to be the greatest wealth.”
He also prodded LCEs to ramp up their local health programs in provinces, cities, and municipalities. He noted that Filipinos are now getting more and more health conscious as reported in a recent Pulse Asia survey conducted on December 6-11 last year. The study result says that ‘staying healthy’ is what most Filipinos are highly concerned with.
“I hope Local Health Boards will be more creative, engaging, and far-reaching in delivering health services and facilities to their constituents,” he said.
Meanwhile, with the recent release of the President Duterte’s Executive Order No. 12 tasking the DILG to monitor compliance of LGUs with the implementation of the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act of 2012 or RPRH Law, Sueno said that the DILG encompasses health matters in line with its mandate to assist the President in the exercise of general supervision over local governments.
The President’s 10-Point Socioeconomic Agenda includes the strengthening of the implementation of the RPRH Law to enable poor couples to make informed choices on financial and family planning. (PR)
