Sec. Teodoro Herbosa, Department of Health. | INQUIRER.net / Arnel Tacson
MANILA, Philippines — More people may now benefit from cheaper medicines following the government’s decision to exempt 21 medicines from the value-added tax (VAT), the Department of Health said on Wednesday.
On Tuesday, Bureau of Internal Revenue’s (BIR) Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. announced that drugs now exempted from VAT are those for cancer, diabetes, hypertension, kidney disease, mental illness, and tuberculosis.
READ: Dying young (VAT on Medicines)
Courtesy of BIR Commissioner Romeo “Jun” Lumagui Jr.’s Official Facebook page
“I welcome that. Very important ‘yung VAT exemption because that lowers the price of medicine,” Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa told reporters on the sidelines of a media forum for the 2nd National Health Sector Meeting in Manila.
“Mas marami akong mabibigyan with the budget that legislation gives me so kung mura ang medicines because of removal of the VAT, malaking tulong yun,” the health chief added.
READ: List of VAT-exempt medicines updated; FDA adds 59
(I can give more with the budget that legislation gives me, so if medicines are cheap because of removing the VAT, that’s a big help.)
The DOH was granted P1.7 billion from the 2024 national budget.
According to Lumagui, the VAT exemption is under Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 17-2024.