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According to report in the ST today, the Health Sciences Authority has approved 18 first-time generic drugs for sale here in the past couple of years. These are for a range of treatments, from antibiotics to cancer, and include a generic version of popular asthma drug Singulair.
But not all the new generic drugs approved for use here have found their way to public hospitals and polyclinics.
In the past two years, only seven have been added, said Mr Tan Jack Thian, group chief procurement officer with SingHealth, including alendronate. The original called Fosamax cost $17.50 per 70mg tablet while the generic drug is only $9.30 each.
SingHealth's group purchasing office (GPO) buys common medication for all public hospitals and polyclinics to enjoy bulk saving. A tender is called annually for different medicines.
Mr Tan said generic drugs are sometimes not available at the time of tender, or the company bringing them in did not submit a bid to supply the drug.(This is a ridiculous argument - if they are aware of a drug's availability, the HSA should be SPECIFYING that in the tender announcements!) The bulk of medicine prescribed in public hospitals and polyclinics are generic types, regardless of whether they are for subsidised or full-paying patients. Generic versions make up 60 per cent of drugs bought through the GPO in terms of quantity, but account for only 30 per cent of money spent.
But not all the new generic drugs approved for use here have found their way to public hospitals and polyclinics.
In the past two years, only seven have been added, said Mr Tan Jack Thian, group chief procurement officer with SingHealth, including alendronate. The original called Fosamax cost $17.50 per 70mg tablet while the generic drug is only $9.30 each.
SingHealth's group purchasing office (GPO) buys common medication for all public hospitals and polyclinics to enjoy bulk saving. A tender is called annually for different medicines.
Mr Tan said generic drugs are sometimes not available at the time of tender, or the company bringing them in did not submit a bid to supply the drug.(This is a ridiculous argument - if they are aware of a drug's availability, the HSA should be SPECIFYING that in the tender announcements!) The bulk of medicine prescribed in public hospitals and polyclinics are generic types, regardless of whether they are for subsidised or full-paying patients. Generic versions make up 60 per cent of drugs bought through the GPO in terms of quantity, but account for only 30 per cent of money spent.
