• Revision during economic crisis led to confusion over availability 

A decision taken by specialist medical colleges over two years ago to revise the national drug formulary, following Sri Lanka’s economic crisis, had led to the impression that the country is facing shortages of certain cancer medicines, President of the All Ceylon Government Pharmacists Association (ACGPA) Chalith Amaradivakara said.

Responding to queries from The Daily Morning when contacted yesterday (04) over complaints raised by patients and some medical professionals, Amaradivakara said Sri Lanka had more than 800 medicines on its priority list, which was significantly higher than in developed countries. When the Government at the time called for a reduction in pharmaceutical imports, several specialist colleges, including the College of Oncologists, carried out a formulary revision and decided to remove some generic medicines from the list, he said. 

As a result, some drugs that were previously available to patients may have been removed from the priority list. However, Amaradivakara stressed this did not mean that essential cancer medicines were unavailable. In many cases, it was a particular brand that was no longer available, while alternative options remained.

He said the decision had been a clinical one and would benefit the country in the long term. “Developed countries do not maintain such extensive priority medicinal drug lists, and Sri Lanka too must move towards a more streamlined arrangement, " he added.

However, since the revision, there have been complaints and concerns from patients and certain medical professionals about shortages of cancer medicines in particular. Amaradivakara said that although Sri Lanka appeared more stable following the pandemic, if another formulary revision should be considered it should be in consultation with the specialist colleges. He stressed that such a decision could not be taken politically. 

He also noted the Medical Supplies Division (MSD) was unable to grant permission to hospitals to locally purchase medicines that had been removed from the priority list.

Amaradivakara further said state hospitals should update the ‘Swastha’ system regularly to reflect the availability of medicines. The MSD distributes donated medicines only after updating the system, and this practice should be followed by all state hospitals as well. 

Attempts to contact the Deputy Minister of Health, the Deputy Director General, and the Director of the MSD were unsuccessful at the time.