ARVs Shortage in the County: Gov’t Pledges Stable Supply by End of January 2022

The government has weighed in on the current shortage of Antiretroviral (ARVs) drugs in the country pledging to ensure a stable supply by the end of January 2022.

Through a press statement, Health CS Mutahi Kagwe said that the shortage experienced in the country is due to a global disruption in the supply chain.

The CS, however, noted that the health Ministry is closely monitoring the global supply chain of all HIV commodities to ensure there are no stockouts in the future.

Among the solutions for this, the government is working on different plans that will ensure there is a stable supply of all HIV commodities by the end of 2022.

“Some of the resolutions included; Government expediting the commodities procurement processes to have the commodities in the country in the next 3 to 4 weeks; Government to also explore local manufacturing for sustainable supply in future,” the CS said.

Read:Reprieve for People Living with HIV as Kenya, US Resolve Stalemate on ARVs

He added that the Ministry of Health is committed to upholding the long-standing partnership with the networks of people living with HIV and will continue to work with them and all other stakeholders to address gaps and challenges in the HIV response including the issues affecting the commodities supply chain.

“The Ministry of Health is also making every effort to ensure there is stable supply of all HIV commodities in the country by end of January 2022. The Ministry looks forward to continued access to safer and efficacious drugs by People Living with HIV and the resumption of the dispensation of multiple months’ supply of ARV drugs as guided by Differentiated Service Delivery Models,” Kagwe said.

PRESS STATEMENT ON STATUS OF ANTIRETROVIRAL (ARVs) AND LABORATORY REAGENTS pic.twitter.com/5KZgNql6Pw

— Ministry of Health (@MOH_Kenya) November 10, 2021

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