Wed, June 19, 2013 14:27:57 PM
Bangkok Post
Wed, June 19, 2013 14:27:57 PM
Bangkok Post
The Government Pharmaceutical Organisation (GPO) plans to produce an affordable, generic anti-impotence drug and says it will be available in the marketplace from Oct 15.
GPO chief Witit Artavatkun said on Wednesday that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given permission to the GPO to produce Silagra - a Viagra equivalent that contains generic sildenafil, the same drug that powers Viagra.
"This will help deal with counterfeit drugs," Dr Witit said. "There are also many elderly people in the country, making this type of drug more popular, but it is less accessible because of its high price."
The generic drug will come in tablet form in dosages of 50mg and 100mg. A 50mg tablet will be sold at 25 baht each and a 100mg tablet 45 baht, he said.
Viagra is currently priced about 200 baht a pill in the market, he added.
The issue has attracted many comments from Thai netizens in different forums.
One of the comments jokingly asked whether the government's 30-baht universal healthcare scheme can be applied.
Another netizen suggested that the generic anti-impotence drug should also be sold in popular convenience stores.
