When the Covid-19 pandemic struck India in March 2020, it exposed several weak spots in the country’s health care system. There were shorta...
When the Covid-19 pandemic struck India in March 2020, it exposed several weak spots in the country’s health care system. There were shortages of oxygen and key drugs. Also in short supply was medical equipment such as oxygen ventilators, which are essential for critical patients.
One reason for the shortage of equipment is the lack of transparency in the procurement procedure, said KL Sharma, the former joint secretary in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, and author of a new book titled Healing the Pharmacy of the World – An Inside Story of Medical Products Manufacturing and Regulation in India.
“It has been alleged that in many cases, the manufacturers of ventilators were asked to bring the ventilators for testing in Nirman Bhawan [the Delhi offices of the Ministry for Health and Family Welfare], a building which is ill-equipped for such testing,” he said in an interview with Scroll.in.
He also described the state of regulation of medical devices in India, the need to strengthen existing laws, and made suggestions for how the government could work to ensure that future pandemics do not create drug shortages and black marketing.
Excerpts from the interview.
Covid-19 has put the spotlight on the issue of demand, supply and most importantly the cost...
