The dental medicine sector found itself in shortage ofanesthetics following the cessation of imports lately. Many dentists have thus been forced to close shop while waiting for a solution to be found. Outcome provided by the Ministry of Industry, which decided to partially reopen imports of anesthetics.
Asked about the issue, the Minister of Health, Abdelhak Saihiprovided more details on the actual circumstances of the shortageas well as the unavailability of certain drugs in Algeria.
Shortage of anesthetics: the public sector spared?
The Minister of Health, Abdelhak Saihi, was present at the inauguration of a new polyclinic in Algiers on Monday and answered a few questions on the spot at the same time. Asked about the shortage of dental anesthetics, Saihi responds that the public health facilities were not affected.
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The problemst is mainly posed at the level of the private sector, explains the latter. Some private clinics were unable to obtain anesthetics, but the problem was quickly resolved by the intervention of the Ministry of Pharmaceutical Industry. Indeed, after the call to the President Tebboune launched by the National Council of the Order of Dentists, the authorities resupplied the market with importing 100,000 units of anesthetics.
Thus, the health sector has not been affected by a shortage as such and anesthetic products are currently perfectly available, adds the minister.
Drug shortage in Algeria: The Minister Saihi reassures
The second problem to which Abdelhak Saihi tackled in the interview is that of unavailable drugs. Indeed, many brands have not been found in Algeria for some time, especially cancer drugs. In response to this, the Ministry of Pharmaceutical Industry had launched, a few months ago, several production units to meet market needs without resorting to imports.
READ ALSO: Production of cancer drugs – Algeria: Aoun gives a boost
On his side, Abdelhak Saihi indicated that the central pharmacy will ensure the availability of drugs in the hospital environment, thanks to the budget allocated by the State.
