The Department of Health (DOH) has initiated its own investigation into the alleged tampering of manufacturing dates of face shields procured from the Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corp., even as the agency said suspended accepting anymore deliveries of face shields from the controversial company.
Following reports of the alleged tampering, the DOH said it will further implement “stringent measures” of inspection during delivery to ensure procured supplies are not damaged nor have exceeded shelf life. The department also underscored that it does not tolerate the practice of tampering with any procured supplies.
“The DOH has decided to suspend acceptance and further deliveries of face shields from Pharmally, pending the conclusion of the investigations in the department. We are aware of the statements made by Pharmally employees about the tampering of the production date on the certificate. Out of prudence and caution, the DOH has decided to suspend the succeeding deliveries to protect the interest and safety of our health-care workers,” Atty. Charade Mercado-Grande, undersecretary of the Health Regulation Team of the DOH said.
Upon the directive of Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III, the agency said that they are already conducting a “comprehensive review” of procurement transactions, which includes inspections of incoming or currently housed stocks of personal protective equipment procured from Pharmally, “either directly or indirectly” through the Procurement Service of the Department of Budget and Management (PS-DBM).
“We are fast-tracking our investigation on the face shields delivered to the DOH and if those are the ones being referred to in the Senate hearing. If the face shields are proven to be tampered with, we would definitely take necessary legal remedies,” added Mercado-Grande.
“The DOH assures that prior to sending out any procured items for use by our health-care workers, these are duly inspected. Likewise, health facilities have to inspect, count, and verify the items they received from the DOH,” he added.
Pharmally previously won the bidding for the face shield contract with the DOH, a separate procurement from PS-DBM.
The procurement of the face shields was done through a competitive bidding process wherein eight prospective bidders submitted their prices for the face shields last March 2021.
Pharmally, according to DOH, has delivered over 500,000 pieces of face shields.
However, the DOH has not yet paid Pharmally since “it is yet to complete the deliveries of the procured face shields.”