Health Minister on drug shortage: Antibiotics will be delivered on Monday

During a visit to the St. Petka Multi-profile Hospital for Active Treatment, caretaker Health Minister Assen Medjidiev commented on the shortage of medicines in pharmacies in the past week, noting that the Health Ministry discussed imposing a complete ban on the export of medicines from Bulgaria, but unfortunately that is not a legal option, as per European conventions such a ban can only be imposed in an extraordinary epidemic situation. 

Medjidiev said that there is already information that certain companies will ensure delivery of antibiotics on Monday. Most noticeable at the moment is the shortage of antibiotics, antipyretics, diabetic and antihypertensive medicines, he specified.

The Health Minister also informed that the problem is not only at a national level, but also affects 25 countries of the European Union. "If any country imposes such a ban [on exports], there will be even greater shortages, so we are appealing to the European Commission for joint action and to coordinate with other European countries," he stressed.

Medjidiev said that the entire Bulgarian Drug Agency has been mobilized, and from Friday the teams of the regional health inspectorates of the country have also included in the inspections. "We are checking the availability, we have involved Bulgarian producers. Especially for antibiotics and antihypertensives, the problem is on a European scale - we have referred the European Commission and the European Medicines Agency. Many of the substances that are used for production come from China and India, and the shortage originates from there," he explained.

"At the moment, we are checking all the stocks in our warehouses, at the wholesalers and what requests they have received from the pharmacies and whether these requests have been fulfilled," he added. The employees of the regional health inspectorates have also been involved in order to have a greater number of examiners. Medjidiev stressed that control has been tightened to the maximum, and as a last resort severe sanctions will be applied.