News
Emergency orders for more drugs and medical equipment
View(s):Amidst the ongoing health crisis and calls for the resignation of the minister in charge, the Health Ministry has placed more than a dozen orders to procure essential drugs and other medical resources to meet the current acute shortages in public hospitals.
At least thirteen procurement announcements categorised as “Emergency Notices” were published on Friday at the e-government procurement portal (www.promise.lk) with short notice of bidding closure on August 15 under the World Bank-funded health emergency financial facility.
Some of the essential drugs and medicines which are placed for procurement orders are Thyroxine, Atenolol, Amitriptyline, Sodium Valproate, Salbutamol, Salbutamol Respiratory Vial, Propranolol, Olanzapine, Nifedipine ER, Hydrochlorothiazide, Fluoxetine HCL, Chlorphenamine and Beclomethasone DP.
Another six tender calls for both Cardio-Thoracic items and dental units were placed by the Ministry this week directly in terms of a similar emergency credit facility made available under the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).
The latest series of urgent placement of orders came days after a meeting President Ranil Wickremesinghe had this week with health officials. It was decided at this meeting to allocate an additional Rs 30 billion to address immediate medical needs for medical supplies which would be sufficient for the next three months, according to a statement issued by the Presidential Secretariat following the meeting.
A five-member committee headed by A. K. Seneviratne, Deputy Secretary to the Treasury was also appointed to devise a simple and transparent scheme for the procurement of quality drugs and medical devices.
Following reports of a severe shortage of drugs and medical resources at dental clinics, Health Services Director General Dr Asela Gunawardena wrote to Provincial and Regional Directors of Health Services on July 25 to create a database on facilities available at dental units such as outpatient departments, oral and maxillofacial units, restorative units and orthodontic units in public hospitals
Five days later, the ministry issued tender notices for the procurement of oral, maxillofacial consumables under the Emergency Health financing facility with funds from AIIB last Sunday.
On President Wickremesinghe’s directions to the National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) to expedite the approval process for United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved drugs and reference drugs from other countries that collaborated with the Health Ministry, the NMRA sought to obtain Cabinet approval to make the necessary amendments to the NMRA Act to ensure faster access to critical medications, the President’s Office said.
The best way to say that you found the home of your dreams is by finding it on Hitad.lk. We have listings for apartments for sale or rent in Sri Lanka, no matter what locale you're looking for! Whether you live in Colombo, Galle, Kandy, Matara, Jaffna and more - we've got them all!