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“In 2006 Government allocation for healthcare was 1.97% of the DGP. Unfortunately the allocation stood at 1.39% of the GPD in 2013. We demand the allocations to be increased in the post war Sri Lanka by reducing the military spending. Current allocation is inadequate to meet the public health requirements. Do you remember the long queues in the ’70s? That is the era we are heading back under the current regime,” he said.
Listing the areas that require patients to spend personally instead of enjoying the free healthcare policy of the Government, MP Premadasa said: “There are queues for all surgeries, be it minor or major. The Government should take the responsibility for creating such long queues. Where is the free healthcare? If you don’t have Rs. 500,000 you can’t do a bypass heart surgery. Government hospitals charge for all matters starting from a simple blood test to surgical cotton.”
Talking about the lack of national healthcare policy and especially the drug policy, Premadasa criticised the “unseen forces” that prevent the Government from proceeding further.
“During the election era, the Minister pledged to establish the Senaka Bibile policy. What has happened to your promise? The Senaka Bibile policy was not executed for the last 40 years. What has happened to the national health policy the Minister presented to the President earlier this year? We need the national health policy and the Senaka Bibile policy established immediately. The ‘Mahinda Chinthana’ pledges to establish local manufacturing of the essential medicines. What have you been doing all this time? The Government imported 12,000 medicines. Amoxicillin is imported under 120 different brand names. According to the Auditor General, in 2013 the Government has imported Rs. 435 million worth of low quality or expired medicines. In 2009, 17 containers were sent to Holcim to destroy in their furnaces,” added MP Premadasa.
In response, Minister of Health Maithripala Sirisena, who turned down all charges, safeguarded the Government and the ‘Mahinda Chinthana’ political manifesto by listing some of the actions he has taken recently.
“I think MP Premadasa should have done better when he was the Deputy Minister of Health, but he failed to do so. During President Premadasa’s period, it was not much of a difference. So, it is clear both father and the son failed to execute the national drug policy as well as the Senaka Bibile policy. The national policies are getting fine-tuned based on the experts and the Cabinet. After 40 years, I was the only Health Minister who could bring it to the Cabinet. There are drawbacks. I trust it could be brought in for House approval within the next few months,” said Minister Sirisena.
“Malnutrition in Sri Lanka is 17%, according to my reports. When I took the Ministry, there were 15,000 nurses. Today I have increased this to 35,000. As far as I know Sri Lanka is not at the fourth place when it comes to committing suicide. We have informed the WHO to correct the records. We have already started manufacturing medicines locally. If you take the total allocation for the health sector, Rs. 180 billion is there from Budget 2015. For 2014 it was Rs. 161 billion. When you were the Deputy Minister in 2003, the allocation was Rs. 36 billion. Do you know 34 different brands of medicines are purchased locally? These are manufactured by 17 local companies in Sri Lanka. Tenders are not called for these purchases,” the Minister added.
