Cheaper meds bill has not reached the President

One week after it was ratified by Congress, President Arroyo has yet to sign the cheaper medicines bill into a law. Abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak learned that as of today the Senate is still printing the official copy that the President is going to sign.

“It’s normal bureaucratic procedure,” said Rep. Antonio Alvarez, co-chair of the bicameral committee that deliberated the bill. “It has to be routed through various offices before it reaches the President.”

Another controversial law, the expanded value added tax for instance, took about two weeks before it was signed by President Arroyo in 2005. It was ratified by the Senate and the House on May 10 and May 11 respectively. President Arroyo signed it into law on May 21, 2005.

Alvarez said he was told that the bill—officially known as the “Universally Accessible Cheaper and Quality Medicines Act of 2008″— may be signed next week at the earliest.

Care in printing
A lawyer involved in the bureaucratic procedure told abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak that the cheaper meds bill is still being printed in special hard paper, which the President will sign. “It’s not ordinary paper,” the lawyer said.

The lawyer said that the Senate must be exercising caution that is why the printing is taking a bit long. “That’s part of the standard procedure. The printing stage is very crucial. A certain world may be smuggled that would change the meaning of the phraseology,” the lawyer said. “It’s a very controversial bill. The public should understand the fact that Congress is exercising caution.”

The lawyer explained that after the bill is printed in the official paper, it has to be counterchecked line by line with the ratified copy of Congress. Any omission or addition of words like “and,” “or,” “provided that” will lead to different interpretations of the language.

Fear of multinationals
After the Senate finalizes printing and counterchecking the official copy, it will have to be sent to the House of Representatives for the signatures of Speaker Prospero Nograles and House’s secretary general. After that, the copy will be sent back to the Senate for the signatures of Senate President Manuel Villar Jr. and the Senate’s secretary general. Only then will the copy can be sent to Malacañang for the President’s signature.

President Arroyo has three options once the ratified bill reaches her desk. She can sign it into law, veto it, or let it lapse into law.

In a statement issued today, Senator Manuel Roxas II said he is concerned about Health undersecretary Alex Padilla’s fear that some multinational firms might attempt to slow down the process of turning the affordable medicines bill into law. A proponent of the bill, Roxas is calling for the immediate passage of the bill into a law.