Generics Drug Has The Same Ingredients with Branded Products – DOH8

Generic medicines offer substantial health and economic benefits to patients, their families, and the national health system according to Angelica Marie Bolos of the Department of Health Regional Office No. 8.

“Despite the affordability of these medicines, it contains the same active ingredients and therefore should work as well as the more expensive branded products provided that they have passed the safety and quality requirements of the Philippine Food and Drug Administration (FDA),”Bolos said.

Health authorities assured that a generic drug is a pharmaceutical drug that is equivalent to a brand-name product in dosage, strength, safety and quality.

Bolos advised to “Always ask for the generics name of medicine everytime you buy in a drugstore.”

However, patients or consumers are advised to buy medicines only from FDA-licensed outlets which are properly authorized to dispense medicines.

Every September is generics awareness month. Hence, DOH strengthens its advocacy campaign to educate patients on the benefits and rational use of generic drugs in accordance with the provisions of the generics law.

Angelica Marie Bolos, pharmacist of the Department of Health Eastern Visayas, was the guest during DOH-PIA on AIR program aired over a local radio station in the city. (PIA8/ajc/cba)