Kerala Hospitals Face Medicine Crisis, State Mulls Emergency Buys

The Kerala government has mandated urgent action to resolve a growing medicine shortage affecting its healthcare facilities. Health Minister K. Muraleedharan convened a meeting and directed the Kerala Medical Services Corporation Ltd (KMSCL) to expedite medicine purchase orders. The KMSCL is also exploring options to procure medicines from the medical corporations of Tamil Nadu or Rajasthan to mitigate the crisis.

Reports indicated that stocks of essential drugs, antibiotics, and rabies vaccines were critically low in hospitals, from peripheral to tertiary care centers. District medical officers confirmed that while hospital stocks were available, KMSCL's procurement and storage centers faced depletion. This shortage is largely due to delays in the KMSCL's annual procurement and re-tendering processes.

As immediate measures, hospitals have been authorized for local purchases using hospital development society funds, though many face financial constraints due to overdue government payments. The Health Minister has set October 15 as a deadline to resolve the current shortage and has instructed KMSCL to begin the procurement process for the next financial year by October, aiming for supplies by February 2027.

Furthermore, district health officials have been directed to enhance efforts in controlling infectious diseases and ensuring drug availability at the grassroots level. The focus is on identifying disease hotspots and conducting home visits to raise public awareness about the epidemic situation.