“Poland is not at risk of a shortage of medicines during the flu season,” the Minister of Health Adam Niedzielski assured on Twitter, responding to signals about difficulties with buying one of the antiviral drugs. The former Minister of Health, Bartosz Arłukowicz, commented on the case and accused the current minister of late reaction to the problem. The latter, in turn, reminded Arłukowicz of the situation in 2012, when there was a shortage of oncological drugs.
The fight over anti-influenza drugs. The former and current health minister are having a discussion on Twitter
Published Dec. 30, 2022 09:33
"We've just had a conversation with the manufacturer of an antiviral drug for patients with influenza infection. We are assured of a significant increase in deliveries in the coming weeks. I assure you once again: Poland is not in danger of running out of medicines during the flu season,” reads the post of the Minister of Health in social media.
The post was commented on by Bartosz Arłukowicz, Minister of Health in 2011-2015. He accused the current head of the ministry of acting too late.
"Do you have a fever of 39 degrees? Are you stuffy? Are you completely powerless? Does everything hurt? Empty pharmacy and no drugs? Relax. The Minister caught on and met the producer today. They want the drugs to be available in a few weeks. Somehow you have to endure. Only a few weeks left,” wrote Arłukowicz.
The accusations did not remain unanswered by Adam Niedzielski. In his entry, he reminded the former Minister of Health of the situation in 2012, when there was a shortage of oncological drugs in Poland.
"Mr. Arłukowicz, do you remember 2012, because all oncology patients remember? Do you remember your indolence, which led to the lack of oncological drugs and the suspension of chemotherapy in some patients? You would be ashamed to speak up. There is no shortage of medicines today,” Niedzielski retorted.
Recall that in 2012 the problem was officially caused by the renovation of the production line in the company's Austrian factory, which supplies cytostatics to the Polish market. However, the manufacturer informed about possible delays half a year before their occurrence. However, after the occurrence of delays and the lack of drugs in hospital pharmacies, the ministry proposed to hospitals to use the procedure of direct import, reserved for drugs not registered in Poland and the European Union, and therefore legally impossible to apply in such a situation. However, the Ministry of Health did not use the intervention purchase procedure.
