‘Probe fake drugs in Ilocos region’

SAN FERNANDO CITY, La Union — Alarmed by the findings of the Department of Health (DOH), a Malacañang official asked government agencies yesterday to look into the proliferation of counterfeit medicines in the Ilocos region.

Dr. Enrie Mendoza, presidential assistant for the Ilocos region, vowed to conduct his own investigation and put to jail those manufacturing and distributing fake drugs.

The other day, Dr. Eduardo Janeiro, DOH Region 1 director, said random purchases showed that about 80 percent of an estimated 1,300 drug stores in the region are selling fake drugs in violation of Republic Act 8203 or the Anti-Counterfeit Drugs Law.

Majority of the drug stores in the region — over 700 — are in Pangasinan.

Janeiro said they are now working with the National Bureau of Investigation and other concerned agencies to strengthen their case against the unscrupulous drug store owners.

So far, he said the DOH has issued closure orders to nine drug stores in the region comprised of Ilocos Sur, Ilocos Norte, La Union and Pangasinan.

According to Janeiro, there are three kinds of counterfeit drugs: those imported but not registered with the Bureau of Food and Drugs; those imported but contained the wrong ingredients; and those made of ash and flour.

Most commonly faked medicines are vitamins and those for hypertension, asthma, diarrhea and diabetes.

Janeiro warned that people who take fake drugs face a great risk of being "overdosed or underdosed" and may eventually develop "resistance to medicines."

"You will not get cured by taking counterfeit drugs. And while it seems that these drugs are cheaper, it is actually more costly because you will not get anything from them and you are only wasting your money," he said. — With Sheila Crisostomo