MORE people may now benefit from cheaper medicines following the government’s decision to exempt 21 medicines from the value-added tax (VAT), the Department of Health (DOH) said on Wednesday, Jan. 31.
On Tuesday, Bureau of Internal Revenue’s (BIR) Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. announced that drugs now exempted from VAT are those for cancer, diabetes, hypertension, kidney disease, mental illness, and tuberculosis.
“I welcome that. Very important ‘yung VAT exemption because that lowers the price of medicine,” Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa told reporters on the sidelines of a media forum for the 2nd National Health Sector Meeting in Manila.
He added: “Mas marami akong mabibigyan with the budget that legislation gives me so kung mura ang medicines because of removal of the VAT, malaking tulong ‘yun.”
The DOH was granted P1.7 billion from the 2024 national budget.
According to Lumagui, the VAT exemption is under Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 17-2024.
Here is the list of VAT-exempted medicines:
For cancer
* panitumumab
* fulvestrant
For diabetes
* metformin
* sitagliptin diabetic.
For high cholestrol
* atorvastatin calcium
* atorvastatin + fenofibrate
For hypertension
* clonidine hydrochloride
* lisinopril
For kidney diseases
* mannitol
* tolvaptan
For mental illness
* desvenlafaxine
For tuberculoisis
* bedaquiline
* isoniazid + pyridoxine hydrochloride (Luisa Cabato © Philippine Daily Inquirer)
