FIFTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC 
) 
OF THE PHILIPPINES 
) 
First Regular'Session 
) 
SENAl~ 
S.No. lo~2 
Introduced by Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
.... 
US and Australian researchers said in a study conducted that 25% of doctors surveyed 
revealed that they had received direct payments from pharmaceutical producers. In addition, 94% 
of practicing doctors have at least one type of relationship with the drug industry, this most often 
means receiving food in the workplace or sample prescription drugs. 
Relationships with pharmaceutical industry are a fundamental part of the way medicine is 
practiced today. These relationships benefit physicians and industry, but the important policy 
question is to what extent do these relationships benefit patients in terms of the care they 
receive? 
The possibility of having conflicts of interest may exist between a physician's duty to 
prescribe a proper drug against an ineffective one manufactured by a pharmaceutical producer 
who has influenced the physician through the gifts given. 
This bill is intended to prevent health manufacturers from having too much influence 
over doctors, by prohibiting any person who manufactures or distributes prescription drugs from 
giving, or offering to give, anything of monetary value to any medical practitioners to encourage 
the medical practitioner to issue prescriptions for that manufacturer's drugs. 1 
I This bill was originally filed in the Fourteenth Congress, Second RegUlar Session 
1 


,. 
S,f \'f,\ 1'k 
FIFTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC 
) 
~.l""ICe 0" i'rH $IY.:aE'I1'J,:t, 
OF THE PHILIPPINES 
) 
First Regular Session 
) 
Introduced by Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago 
1 
AN ACT 
2 
PROHIBITING THE GIVING OF GIFTS OFFERED BY PRESCRIPTION DRUG 
3 
MANUFACTURERS AND DISTRIBUTORS TO ENCOURAGE PRACTITIONERS TO 
4 
PRESCRIBE CERTAIN DRUGS AND PROVIDING A PENALTY. 
5 
6 
Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in 
7 
Congress assembled: 
8 
9 
SECTION L Short Title. This Act may be known as the "Medical Gift Giving Ban Act". 
10 
SECTION. 2. Definitions. In this Act, the term: 
11 
(a) Medical Practitioners - means physicians and surgeons authorized by law to practice 
12 
medicine and treat illness and injury by prescribing medication, performing diagnostic tests and 
13 
evaluations, performing surgery, and providing other medical services and advice. 
14 
(b) Prescription Drug - means drug requiring a prescription to be presented before 
15 
purchase. 
16 
( c) Drug Manufacturer - means a person or business entity engaged in making, 
17 
assembling, processing or modifying devices, or mixing, producing or preparing drugs in dosage 
18 
forms by encapsulating, entableting or other process, or packaging, repackaging or otherwise 
19 
changing the container, wrapper or label of any package containing a drug or device in 
20 
furtherance of the distribution of the drug or device from the original place of manufacture to the 
21 
person who makes final delivery or sale to the ultimate consumer. 
22 
(d) Drug Distributor - is a person or business entity who delivers and supplies the drugs 
23 
produced by a Drug Manufacturer. 
24 
( e) Medical Sales Representative - a person employed to represent a Drug Manufacturer 
25 
or Drug distributor and to sell its merchandise. 
1 


• 
26 
SECTION 3. Prohibitions. Except as provided in the succeeding section, no Dmg 
27 
Manufacturer, Drug Distributor, or Medical Sales Representative may give, or offer to give, 
28 
anything of monetary value to any Medical Practitioner to encourage that Medical Practitioner to 
29 
issue prescription orders for a drug manufactured or distributed by that Drug Manufacturer or 
30 
Drug Distributor. 
31 
SECTION 4. Exceptions. Section 3 does not apply to any of the following: 
32 
a) Product samples given by a drug Manufacturer or Drug Distributor to a Medical 
33 
Practitioner for delivery to a patient. 
34 
b) Scientific literature for use by a Medical Practitioner. 
35 
SECTION 5. Penalties. 
36 
(a) Any person who shall violate any provision of this Act shall upon conviction, be 
37 
subject to a fine of not less than One thousand pesos (Pl,OOO.OO) but not more than ten thousand 
38 
pesos (PIO,OOO.OO) or imprisonment of not less than two (2) months but not more than one (1) 
39 
year, or both upon the discretion ofthe court. 
40 
If the offender is an alien, he shall be deported after service of sentence and payment of 
41 
fine without further deportation proceedings. 
42 
(b) IV case the offender is a naturalized citizen, he shall, in addition to the penalty 
43 
prescribed herein, suffer the penalty of cancellation of his naturalization certificate and its 
44 
registration in the civil register and immediate deportation after service of sentence and payment 
45 
of fine. 
46 
( c) Any director, officer or agent of a corporation who shall authorize, order or perform 
47 
any of the acts or practices constituting in whole or in part a violation of Section 3, shall be 
48 
subject 
to 
penalties 
to 
which 
that 
corporation 
l)1ay 
be 
subject. 
49 
In case the violation is committed by, or in the interest of a foreign juridical person duly 
50 
licensed to engage in business in the Philippines, such license to engage in business in the 
51 
Philippines shall immediately be revoked. 
2 


52 
SECTION 6. Separability Clause. - If any provision or part thereof, is held invalid or 
53 
unconstitutional, the remainder of the law or the provision not otherwise affected shall remain 
54 
valid and subsisting. 
55 
SECTION 7. Repealing Clause. - Any law, presidential decree or issuance, executive 
56 
order, letter of instruction, administrative order, rule or regulation contrary to, or inconsistent 
57 
with the provisions of this Act is hereby repealed, modified or amended accordingly. 
58 
SEC-lION 8. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its 
59 
publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation. 
60 
61 
Approved. 
3