More raids for fake medicines coming

DAVAO CITY—The Food and Drugs Administration (FDA), now armed with police power, has stepped up its campaign against counterfeit medicines and pharmacies without registered pharmacists.

Arnold Alindada, FDA regional officer for Eastern Mindanao based here, said with police power, the agency’s Regulatory Enforcement Unit (REU) would no longer wait for court orders to crack down on erring establishments and individuals.

He said the new power was provided by Republic Act No. 5921, the law that regulates the practice of pharmacy and setting standards in pharmaceutical education in the Philippines, and Republic Act No. 9711 of 2009, the act that strengthened and rationalized the regulatory capacity of the FDA.

Alindada said the strengthened campaign started in Eastern Mindanao in August following training sessions for REU personnel. Judy Quiros, Inquirer Mindanao