As if the stress and dangers of contracting Covid-19 during the ongoing fifth wave of the pandemic were not enough, where the most viral variant of the virus yet is the most dominant, those infected now also have to worry about finding the necessary medication to treat it. An acute shortage of medication used to treat fever, a common symptom in Covid-19 patients, persists in Punjab and the provincial government is evidently clueless over how to deal with the matter that has now been lingering on for close to three months. Punjab Health Secretary Imran Sikandar Baloch has stated that there is no shortage of fever medicine in the province and 68.6 million pills are available in the market. If that were the case then why is it that pharmacies are rationing out the medication in order to maintain a minimum level of inventory? This contradiction suggests that either the shortage is artificial or it is genuine and the government is denying it.
While many who have had the Omicron variant are asymptomatic, there is a considerable number of active cases in the province currently who are having symptoms, and fever is a prominent one. Additionally, there are a plethora of other illnesses that result in fever that only responds to medication such as paracetamol, the main salt used in making pills to treat fever. The wave of dengue last year could also be a source of the shortage as its only treatment was to manage fever that would persist for many days requiring up to four doses being taken daily. With a Covid-19 positivity rate that is stubbornly stuck at 11.5% and is expected to rise in the coming weeks the requirement for these medicines will only increase. Rather than issuing warnings and denying the existence of the problem the Punjab government should look for an inventive solution. Engaging private pharmaceutical companies would be a good place to start. Issues related to health of the citizenry should not be taken so lightly.
