The anti-tuberculosis drug supply is running low; thus, the state health agency has started limiting patient access to the medication. While efforts are being made to obtain medications for Bengali patients, health officials anticipate that it may take the state at least three weeks to restock.
This situation has affected all of India. The medication is given to state governments at no cost by the Central TB Division (CTD), which is a division of the health ministry. ATDs should be purchased locally, according to a notice from CTD to TB officials across all states, citing unanticipated and superfluous reasons over a three-month period.
Health officials in Bengal claim that before the CTD notification, the supply of ATD was inconsistent for more than three months. The local tuberculosis centers used to provide a TB patient with a full month’s supply of the medicine; but, as of late, the supply has been rationed and is now limited to five or seven days.
According to medical experts, the ongoing crisis is expected to impede the progress made towards the health ministry’s goal of eliminating tuberculosis by 2025. Depending on where the infection is located, doctors advised TB patients to take an ATD medication for six months to a year.