The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Member States, comprising Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam, convened in a two-day online workshop to ensure fair prices and effective financing of medicines and health technologies with the aim to fortify health systems and to achieve wider Universal Health Coverage on April 6-7, 2022.

The Department of Health (DOH) on March 30, 2022 convened patient groups and civil society organizations (CSOs) to discuss updates on the national government’s COVID-19 response, vaccination program rollout, and the ongoing initiatives to provide Filipinos better access to pharmaceutical commodities and healthcare services during the virtual 15th Policy Dialogue on Universal Health Care (UHC) and Access to Medicines with  theme “Gamot Para sa Lahat, Siguruhing Sasapat”.

The Department of Health (DOH) announces the full implementation of drug price caps starting March 23, 2022 through Executive Order (EO) No. 155 signed by President Rodrigo Duterte. This brings the total number of drugs with maximum drug retail price to 121 molecules or 204 drug formulas, following the first round of price regulation implemented in June 2020 with the signing of EO No. 104 which covered 87 molecules.

The Executive Order (EO) No. 155, “Further Improving Access to Healthcare Through the Regulation of Prices in the Retail of Drugs and Medicines,” which was issued by President Rodrigo R. Duterte on 07 December 2021, subjected 34 drug molecules or 71 drug formulas under price regulation through Maximum Wholesale Price (MWP) and Maximum Retail Price (MRP). The implementation shall begin on 23 March 2022.

The Department of Health expressed elation over the signing of Executive Order (EO) No. 155, by President Rodrigo Roa Duterte adding 34 medicines to the list of drugs with mandatory price caps.