4 min readMumbaiMar 24, 2024 06:18 PM IST
First published on: Mar 22, 2024 at 02:59 AM IST
MAHARASHTRA IS staring at another tuberculosis (TB) drug shortage with the state having stock that would last for only a month. This is the second time within six months that the state is facing a shortage of TB drugs.
The nationwide drug scarcities had has prompted the Central TB Division (CTD), under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, to urge state officers on March 18 to procure drug-sensitive anti-TB drugs — DSTB-IP(A) and DSTB-CP(A) — locally, ensuring uninterrupted patient care.
This includes three Fixed-dose combinations (FDC) and four FDC drugs for both continuous and intensive phases.
As Maharashtra rushes to secure drugs locally, the TB centres ration limited stock, providing only a week’s worth of medication to patients. A 48-year-old man from Dharavi, after a long wait at the DOTS centre in JJ Hospital, received only TB drugs for four days and was asked to return for more this weekend. But he may have to postpone due to his wife’s job at a tea stall, crucial for their survival.
“I’m too weak to go alone, so I take my wife. But her absence means losing essential day earnings as due to my TB, I had to quit my job. So, making multiple visits unaffordable for us,” he said. Ahead of the World TB Day on March 24, besides Maharashtra, states like Chhattisgarh and Bihar, are facing the shortages further affecting the treatment of the TB patients.
The CTD, in its letter to the state TB officers, mentioned the procurement of drugs could get delayed due to “unforeseen and extraneous circumstances” for a period of three months.The letter, signed by Deputy Director General (TB) Dr Rajendra Joshi, stated that if local authorities could not provide free drugs, patients should be reimbursed.
It clarified that any formulation available in the market, matching National TB Elimination Program (NTEP) recommendations, is permissible. However, state officials fear they might struggle to procure medicines on the ground, as they did last October.
“When there’s a shortage of drug supply, it isn’t confined to one state but affects others as well. So, suddenly, the demand for medicines surges, making timely procurement problematic,” stated a senior officer from the state TB department.
“At present, we have sufficient drug stock, but it would last only a month without a prompt resupply,” the officer added.
The state health department is currently redistributing drugs within districts where there is more acute shortage.
Dr Sunita Golhait, joint director (TB) at health services in Maharashtra, acknowledged the drug shortage. She said, “We’ve initiated tenders for necessary anti-TB drugs, expecting a steady supply within 15 days.”
Anti-tuberculosis organisations and social activists in the country had raised their voice in this regard.
The health activists claim that if a person gets drugs for only two to three days, they are very unlikely to come back again — especially if they begin to feel better.
Ganesh Acharya, a TB survivor and activist, criticized the central division, stating that it “cannot play with the lives of patients,” leaving them without medicines. He emphasized that while it is easy to advocate for local procurement, they are unaware of the ground reality regarding stock availability and expiration.
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