THE Health Ministry must come up with a clear policy to address the shortage of medicines, Bandar Kuching MP Dr Kelvin Yii said today.

The DAP health spokeman said there was a need for a long-term national medicine security strategy.

He said medical shortages could not be taken lightly as it affected the public and private healthcare systems and was a global supply issue.

“The two-month lockdown in Shanghai, China, and Russia’s war in Ukraine have sparked major shortages of various prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) medications in Malaysia,” Yii said in a statement.

“While the Ministry of Health has downplayed the seriousness of the issue and (said) the shortage of medicines is under control, this issue cannot be taken lightly.

“This is because Malaysia’s entire supply of finished pharmaceutical products is either directly imported, or indirectly imported through the import of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and pharmaceutical intermediates for local manufacture – both of which have been disrupted due to these external events and a surge in both local and global demand for medicines,” Yii said in a statement.

The media have reported a shortage in the supply of pharmaceutical treatments for fever, cold, cough, sore throat, and hand, foot and mouth disease.

In a statement, pharmaceutical services senior director Norhaliza A. Halim said there was a sharp increase in the demand for paracetamol, vitamin C, and cough and cold medicines for children.

Yii, who is the Special Select Committee On Health, Science And Innovation chair, said the MOH must spell our short-, mid-and long-term policies to minimise the effect of the shortages.

For the short term, Yii suggested that the National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency undertook an audit and stock count in both public and private health facilities to understand the full extent of the shortages.

He also urged the Malaysian Organisation of Pharmaceutical Industries and the Pharmaceutical Association of Malaysia to ensure that they manufacturers of innovator and generic drugs have enough production capacity for a sufficient stockpile of medicines.

He said concessions companies such as Pharmaniaga and other central contracts companies must prioritise supply to MOH facilities for proper distribution.

“On top of that an advisory can be issued for health care providers to start rationing some supplies now to buffer against the possible high likelihood that stockpiles may not be enough.

“For the longer term, the national medicine security strategy must include plans for local production of active pharmaceutical ingredients – the active components of a drug – and increased stockholding by local pharmaceutical manufacturers and importers.

“While this likely is a temporary issue, how temporary it will be is still unknown and when it comes to essential items such as medication, it must not be taken lightly.”