Abstract
A national drug policy was formulated in the Philippines after the rise of the Aquino government in 1986. In this article, the author discusses the pharmaceutical situation before the policy was announced, and argues that the major push for a policy came from the confluence of four factors: a change in the structures of political power, especially the rise of a new government and the empowerment of health non-governmental organizations as new participants in the policy process; members of the Department of Health who pushed for a policy; a more conducive social and political climate, both locally and internationally; and a growing body of knowledge about the drug issue. The author discusses the policy's achievements as well as the limitations that have beset the policy from 1987 to 1992.
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