To address the issue of drug shortage and improve the supply of drugs,a meeting was held in the capital today. Suppliers, stakeholders, officials from Drug Regulatory Authority and department of medical services attended the meeting.
The Director of Medical Services, Dr. Ugen Dophu, said the shortage of drugs was caused by many different factors. It cannot be blamed to one particular agencies or stakeholders. But, he also shared lapse on their part.
“All these products are not manufactured here in Bhutan. We are dependent on manufacturing and the price of third countries, so that’s why certain percentage of shortage will always be there,” he said, adding that it is also because of some inefficiency in the procurement system. “There is no procurement specialist in our DVED. We advertised several times looking for such specialist but either they are not available or they don’t want to work in DVED.”
The suppliers are found responsible for the drug shortage in the country. The drugs vaccine and equipment division said the suppliers do not deliver on time. They also report to the division at the last minute of their inability to supply items. Many other problems were reported in the meeting. But suppliers have their own problems.
According to Sonam Payday,a Supplier, the government had started to give them a rate contract for three years from 2010, which is as per Mckinsey findings. “But then this has created problems. Because most of the suppliers have worked rates, studying the past 3 -4 years, wherein you could see only certain percentage of variation in terms of rates,” she said, adding that the cost has gone up now. “Within just one year, the prices have just shot up so much- dollar prices, fuel prices have gone up, so all this has accumulated to not being able to supply”
Another Supplier, K.S. Dhendup, said that the Ministry themselves had gone to Bangladesh and Kolkata and yet were not able to even get 28 items. “So if the government cannot get, don’t expect private individuals to get from India.”
The Suppliers also said that the penalties were too heavy. They said that due to very small quantity required for Bhutan, the manufacturers are not keen to supply the items.
