The Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Association of the Philippines (PHAP) backs the global industry’s efforts to develop vaccines and treatments for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and committed to bring them over to the country as soon as they become available.
(We) are also ready to support the government to contain this current health threat,” said Teodoro Padilla, PHAP executive director, in a statement yesterday.
PHAP is a member of the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers & Associations (IFPMA) which is currently developing new medicines and vaccines to help respond to the COVID-19 epidemic. IFPMA represents the research-based pharmaceutical companies and associations across the globe.
“PHAP fully supports efforts that will enable the pharmaceutical sector to continue the work it has started in the research and development of potential vaccines and treatments for the COVID-19,” Padilla said.
PHAP also said the role of the private sector is crucial as government tries to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the country.
“PHAP member companies are also looking very closely at our supply chains to ensure that essential medicines and vaccines are available for Filipino patients. Our members have a continuity plan to ensure that the supply of needed diagnostics and medicines is uninterrupted during emergencies,” Padilla said.
Dr. Beaver Tamesis, PHAP president, said the role of the pharmaceutical industry is crucial in efforts to stop the spread of COVID-19.
Tamesis added pharmaceutical companies enable the research and development of innovations and technologies for the detection of the COVID-19, and in the ongoing search for its potential prevention and treatment.
“Once available, our goal is to immediately bring these life-saving innovations into the country in partnership with the government. Now more than ever, there is need for strong public-private collaboration to contain health threats,” said Tamesis.
The speedy sharing of the pathogen sequence, followed by the declaration of the novel coronavirus as an international emergency, and the convening of a research and development forum, should further galvanize global collaboration with the private and public sectors for the timely development of vaccines and treatments, the IFPMA said.
As a science-driven sector, global pharmaceutical companies have reviewed their drug and vaccine portfolios to see if there is any research that could be helpful in tackling COVID-19.
This includes efforts to identify suitable assets in their libraries that could be utilized in the fight against coronaviruses.
Relevant assets include diagnostics and biomarkers, approved therapies, or compounds in development that could be repurposed for use in treating patients with the coronavirus.
Artificial Intelligence is also finding its place in the process, and is being used to mine through medical information to find drugs that might be helpful for tackling the novel coronavirus.
Several biopharmaceutical companies are working with the Chinese government and research institutes in the United States and Australia to fast-track the development of vaccines against COVID-19.
R&D biopharmaceutical companies with potentially relevant knowhow have teams of scientists checking their libraries for potential assets that could fight coronaviruses.
