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Centre will ensure K’taka gets adequate share of Covid drugs: Gowda
Bengaluru Union minister for chemicals and fertilizers DV Sadananda Gowda on Friday said demands for various medications from Karnataka have increased amid surging Covid-19 cases, adding that the Centre would ensure adequate allocations are made to the state
Bengaluru
Union minister for chemicals and fertilizers DV Sadananda Gowda on Friday said demands for various medications from Karnataka have increased amid surging Covid-19 cases, adding that the Centre would ensure adequate allocations are made to the state.
Gowda, the member of Parliament from Bengaluru North and former Karnataka chief minister, said the state will get the “lion’s share” in allocations of Covid medicines.
“Karnataka has so far received 10 lakh (1 million) vials of Remdesivir as allocated till May 23,” the minister said at a press conference in Bengaluru.
“From 23 May till 30 May, Karnataka will get the lion’s share of allocations (of Remdesivir) is what I wish to tell you,” he added.
The minister said the shortage of antiviral drug cropped as its demand has increased from 2.3 million in the first week of April and now the government is enabling production of 11.9 million at present. He said the government was increasing capabilities to cater to the demand.
Remdesivir, a drug used to treat Covid-19 patients, has been discontinued as part of treatment by the World Health Organisation. However, it has been in high demand in many places across the country, including Karnataka. Acute shortage has also resulted in black marketing of remdesivir, with reports of a single vial being sold for a whooping ₹60,000 making headlines over the past few weeks.
Karnataka has witnessed a sudden surge in Covid-19 cases since the beginning of April, which has overwhelmed the already inadequate healthcare infrastructure in the state and forcing the BS Yediyurappa-led government, which ignored the warning of an imminent second wave by the technical advisory committee, to play catch up.
On Friday, the state reported 32,218 new cases, taking the active caseload due to Covid-19 to 514,238. It also reported 353 fatalities, which took the toll to 24,207 , according to health department bulletin.
Gowda said other medication like Tocilizumab was also in high demand. He said Karnataka has so far been allocated nearly 14,000 vials of this imported drug out of the total of around 100,000 that the Centre has so far been able to procure.
“We are getting more imported this week. There is no need to panic,” Gowda said.
Karnataka has also seen a spike in Black Fungus or Mucormycosis cases in recent days. According to official estimates, around 100 cases have been reported in the state so far. The primary drug used to cure patients infected with black fungus is Amphotericin B, which is an imported drug.
Gowda said the Centre has so far secured around 145,000 vials of Amphotericin B, which are being distributed based on demand. The minister said Karnataka has so far been given enough vials to treat 1,650 patients. However, experts questioned the Centre’s calculation, saying that an infected patients requires anywhere between 20-60 vials.
