Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): There is an acute shortage of TB medicines in the state, which will have an adverse effect on Mission 2025, the deadline set to eliminate tuberculosis, doctors say. It will affect nearly 1 lakh TB patients in state and 10,000 in Bhopal district.
District TB Centres (DTCs) do not have sufficient stock of medicines. TB cell that works under National Health Mission (NHM) has called the tenders at state level.
Normally, four-drug fixed-dose combination (4FDC) and (3FDC) are given to TB patients. Isoniazid + Rifampicin + Ethambutol + Pyrazinamide is a combination of four medicines as fixed-dose combination (4-FDC).
In Bhopal, gas victims affected with TB has written a letter to state government citing shortage of TB medicines in last one-and-a-half months. Rachna Dhingra from Bhopal Group for Information and Action (BGIA) said, “We have written a letter to state government about shortage of medicines. Patients visiting DTCs return empty-handed.”
Former DTC incharge Dr Manoj Verma said, “For the last one- and-a-half months, there is shortage of medicine. With discontinuity of medicines, patients will suffer. In market, TB treatment costs Rs 10,000 per patient while government provide it free.”
State TB officer Dr Varsha Rai said Central government supplied TB medicines.
But it has not supplied this time. It led to shortage of medicines in states including Madhya Pradesh. We have called tenders at state level. Secondly, the districts that have surplus stock of medicines transport medicines to other DTCs.”
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