Health Ministry, Thalassemia Society Warn of Running out of Medicines Due to US-Saudi Siege
The Ministry of Public Health and Population and the Yemeni Society for Thalassemia and Hereditary Blood Patients held a press conference to comment on the scarcity of life-saving drug stocks due to US-Saudi Siege.
Dr. Ahmed Shamsan, head of the Yemeni Society for Thalassemia and Hereditary Blood Diseases, explained that 40,000 patients with blood clots in Yemen have increased their suffering due to the blockade, the prevention of entry of medicines, and the low economic level of their families.
Shamsan indicated that due to the complexities of the blockade, essential medicines for patients with hereditary hemolysis arrive after 6 months to a full year from the moment of request, stressing that there is a real danger to patients’ lives due to the lack of essential medicines for thalassemia patients and the disavowal of United Nations organizations.
For his part, Dr. Mukhtar Ismail, Director of the Treatment Center for Thalassemia Patients, explained that patients’ ability to receive treatment and access to our centers has declined by about 42% under the blockade.
Ismail confirmed that the stock of life-saving medicines for thalassemia patients reached zero in the governorates of Hajjah and Al-Hodeidah, and close to this number in the capital and other governorates.
In turn, Ali Jahaf, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health for the therapeutic medicine sector, said: The ministry lacks regular funding to provide life-saving medicines in light of the siege and the draining of state resources by the aggression coalition.
Recently, The spokesman for the Ministry of Health, Dr. Anis Al-Asbahi, holds the US-Saudi aggression responsible for the deterioration of the health situation in Yemen as a result of the blockade and preventing the entry of medicines and medical supplies.
“The disaster that claimed the lives of children in Kuwait Hospital is a result of the blockade and the failure to open Sana’a International Airport as required,” he said.
“The cause of the disaster in Kuwait Hospital was a contaminated batch that was smuggled after the stocks of oncological medicine were depleted from the warehouses of the Ministry of Health and the National Center for Oncology,” he added.
He stressed the need for strict measures to be taken in order to limit the spread of smuggled drugs that harm the health of the citizens and also the national economy.
The Ministry affirmed that it will continue to play its role in health care, and confront the ongoing aggression on the health sector, including supporting the strategic options of the Yemeni people to end the aggression and siege.
Source: Al Masirah.net