00:00There is no international standard preventing the importation of generic pharmaceuticals into this country when compared to brand name pharmaceuticals.
00:10This has been stated at a public administration and appropriations committee by the Private Pharmacy Retail Business Association, which says generics are used by first world countries, including the United States as well.
00:23Executive member of the association, Shazim Tula, explains that after the patent for a drug expires, the rest of the world is given an opportunity to produce the drug, which is what a generic drug is.
00:38Even then, we have very difficult circumstances in Trinidad and Tobago where we can register generics so that people may benefit from lower pricing.
00:49One more point. There are a lot of people who think that the brand name is superior to the generic.
00:57Generally, that is not so because we've had people for 12 to 15 years living on generics with chronic diseases and doing exceedingly well.
01:07In fact, the association has estimated that it can save the country around $170 million annually.
01:14The association believes the Chemistry, Food and Drug Act is outdated, saying many of the generic drugs utilized in countries like the U.S. and the United Kingdom come from eastern countries.
01:26Now, based on these laws, those countries are not included in what is called the stringent regulatory authorities.
01:35The regulatory authorities that they look at reference to in Trinidad and Tobago are from the United States, Europe, Canada and the EU countries.
01:46The association adds that most of the active pharmaceutical ingredients or APIs in the world are also made in eastern countries like India and China.
01:55In this regard, it is calling for legislative changes and it is questioning why generics are not being approved at a faster and proactive pace.
02:05Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Health Asif Ali says there is no preference in the procurement of generic drugs versus brand name drugs for the public sector,
02:15but he notes that generics can take longer to be registered.
02:18He adds that it is possible to acquire generic drugs manufactured in a non-SRA country once it is registered for use, for instance, in the United States.
02:29If it is registered for use, for example, in the U.S., it is SRA approved by that country's FDA and we will place reliance on that.
02:36And Acting Director of the Chemistry, Food and Drugs Division, Hazmat Ali, outlines that the stringent process, including certain detailed documentation required to register,
02:47especially generic drugs, is to safeguard the well-being of the population.
02:53Issues like pharmaceutical counterfeiting is big internationally and we would not want to get ourselves into purchasing drugs that may seem generic.
03:04And when it arrives here, it gives you a placebo effect or it doesn't work or there are other issues associated with the drug being imported here.
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