Petrina Francis, Staff Reporter

Dr Fenton Ferguson, Opposition spokesperson on health, yesterday said he was concerned that patients are not able to get some drugs in hospitals and are forced to turn to private pharmacies.

On April 1, user fees were abolished in public facilities across the island, except at the University Hospital of the West Indies. Public patients do not have to pay for, among other things, registration, surgeries, medication and X-ray.

"I am picking up that there is still the challenge as it relates to pharmaceuticals, as it is free but not available," Ferguson told The Gleaner yesterday.

Purchase supplies outside

He added: "It means that patients will have to purchase supplies outside."

Asked if this was the case in specific hospitals, Ferguson said the problem exists in many facilities.

He promised to visit hospitals and health centres in the coming weeks to observe the activities that are taking place.

Meanwhile, Dr Sheila Campbell-Forrester, chief medical officer for Jamaica, admitted that there was a shortage of drugs in some facilities.

"A report was sent in today (yesterday) that, in some places, some of the drugs are not available," Campbell-Forrester told The Gleaner yesterday.

She also pointed out that some patients who had prescriptions from last year waited until the user fees were removed before they filled the prescriptions, and this could also have resulted in a shortage of some drugs.

The chief medical officer also said that, because of the increase in demand, local suppliers may not have enough drugs and the ministry will be forced to wait on importation of the pharmaceuticals.

petrina.francis@gleanerjm.com