Pharmaceutical firms deny hoarding masks

(File photo)
(File photo)

PHARMACEUTICAL companies denied allegations of face mask hoarding amid the threat of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19).

Councilor Nilo Abellera, committee head on trade, commerce, and industry, presented on Tuesday, March 3, the item of a resolution requesting the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)-Davao Region and the Department of Health (DOH)-Davao Region to investigate the possible hoarding of all sorts of medical face masks, which are running out in almost all pharmacies in the city.

Abellera took action of the resolution filed by Councilor Pamela Librado-Morata on February 4, requesting at least 100 pharmaceutical and medical companies in the city to provide and ensure the adequate supply of face masks for the protection and prevention against Covid-19, which is continuously spreading worldwide.

Librado-Morata said medical companies and pharmaceuticals were urged to “diligently meet the high demand of medical face masks supply through mass production and distribution to every barangay in Davao City.”

In a previous interview, she said more people especially those in hospitals need them apart from those who just wanted to protect themselves from the virus.

Abellera conducted a committee hearing for the subject matter latter February 19, 2020 for the appropriate action to be taken about the resolution presented by Morata.

In a committee hearing held February 19, 10 pharmaceutical companies were invited during the hearing.

Abellera said that during the committee hearing, all of them stated they were selling medical face mask. However, they started to experience running out of stocks during the start of the Taal Volcano eruption.

“Their products were bought by relatives of thoe victims of the Taal eruption,” Abellera said on Tuesday’s 19th City Council regular session.

The councilor added that the demands sore higher when the Covid-19 outbreak started January this year.

“When the coronavirus outbreak started last January this year, their supplies were already depleted due to the Taal eruption,” he said, adding these companies were unsure when the stocks will replenish.

During the committee hearing DTI-Davao representative Czar Raul Bulaclac confirmed during its inspection that local pharmacies are in fact out of stocks.

Bulaclac said they are continuously conducting inspection, together with the Food and Drug Administration-Davao Region (FDA), to ensure that no hoarding took event.

The DTI official also affirmed that the supplies started to deplete during the Taal eruption.

Bulaclac also said, other provinces were also buying medical face mask in the city, causing further supply depletion.

Meanwhile, DFA-Davao representatiove Deborah Legapsi said DOH-Davao alrady implemented a price freeze on the emergency medical supplies prior to the stated issues.

Based on DOH’s price monitoring, the N95 mask ranges between P45 to P105, while the surgical masks is from P1.10 to P8.

Abellera said that FDA and DTI confirmed that there is no hoarding of surgical masks in the city.

DTI-Davao representative Christopher Dalhog said during the hearing that local manufacturers of face masks already pledge to produce 100,000 masks per week.

Dalhog added that Medtecs International Corporation Limited, a well-known healthcare products and hospital services provider and a leading manufacturer of reusable hospital apparel, disposable personal protective equipment (PPE) and workwear, has ordered additional equipment to aid in their production and assured to start immediately.

However, according to Medtecs, it will most likely that prices will increase due to more expensive raw materials.

“Nonetheless, prices will be monitored and should be capped P8 as advised by FDA,” Abellera said. (RGL and Karen Bardinas/UM intern)

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