Filipinos looking for cheaper maintenance medicines have a new place to go. The first Pambansang Botika opened on September 29 at the Social Security System (SSS) Diliman branch in Quezon City, offering low-cost generic medicines, vaccines and primary care services in one stop.
The pharmacy is run by Philippine Pharma Procurement Inc. (PPPI) in partnership with the SSS. It serves SSS members and pensioners, but SSS President and CEO Robert Joseph de Claro stressed that it is not limited to them. “It is open to all citizens,” he said, according to The Manila Times.
The key to the low prices is direct bulk procurement. PPPI President and CEO Maria Blanca Kim Lokin explained that buying quality generic drugs directly from manufacturers in India, China and the Philippines removes middleman markups, PhilSTAR Life reported. The Diliman branch carries more than 200 medicines, including 76 essential medicines covered by PhilHealth’s YAKAP program. Prices reported by Radyo Pilipinas include amlodipine 5 mg at P1 per tablet, losartan 100 mg at P5, and metformin 500 mg at P1.50.
The outlet is designed as a one-stop shop. Members and pensioners can finish their SSS transactions and buy their maintenance medicines in the same visit. The site is also linked with PhilHealth’s YAKAP primary care program through an accredited provider on-site, so eligible clients can get consultations and diagnostic screenings and obtain prescribed medicines covered by the PhilHealth GAMOT package.
Operating under the slogan “Kabuhayan at Kalusugan,” the program also aims to create livelihood opportunities. PPPI Chair Winston Castelo said Pambansang Botika will follow a social franchise model, allowing local government units, small and medium enterprises, local entrepreneurs and corporate partners to open branches of their own.
Lokin said the initiative builds on the old Botika ng Bayan program but aims to be more sustainable. “Noon more than 2,000 ang Botika ng Bayan. Our vision is to double that number,” she said, as quoted by the Daily Tribune.
The program also plans to reach people who cannot easily travel to an outlet. Lokin said Pambansang Botika Plus will launch a mobile medicine-delivery network with local governments to bring medicines directly to communities and households. “This is the last-mile delivery that we want to bring you,” she said.
De Claro said the Diliman outlet will serve as a model for similar pharmacies in other SSS branches, while Castelo said the government plans to expand the co-location setup and add more PhilHealth drug benefit packages in future branches. PPPI also plans to bring the drugstores to key regional areas.
The launch coincided with SSS Anniversary Month and Generics Month. For now, the Diliman branch is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday to Friday. For families in Northern Mindanao and other regions, the planned expansion offers hope that affordable medicines will soon be closer to home.
Source: Daily Tribune; The Manila Times; PhilSTAR Life; Radyo Pilipinas
