"COVID-19 Treatment Supplies Are Not Short... Temporary Distribution Issue"

Inventory Shortages Occur Due to Regional Stock Variations in Bangdaebon... Monitoring Underway

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Young-won] In response to questions raised amid the surge in COVID-19 cases about whether there is a shortage of treatments, health authorities have drawn a clear line, stating that "it is merely a distribution issue caused by a temporary increase in demand."

On the afternoon of the 15th, Ko Jae-young, Crisis Communication Team Leader of the Central Disease Control Headquarters, said at a back briefing that in response to the question, "Is it that remdesivir and Paxlovid are insufficient, preventing administration?" he firmly stated, "(Regarding treatments) some shortages have occurred due to supply adjustments as demand increased, but there is no overall shortage of supply."

Team Leader Ko added, "In the second week of March, 130,000 vials of the injectable treatment remdesivir are scheduled to be imported into the country," and he stated, "We will make efforts to ensure sufficient supply to treatment hospitals."

The Central Disease Control Headquarters also explained that the shortage of the oral treatment Paxlovid is a temporary situation. So far, 163,000 doses of Paxlovid have been imported into the country, and 53,000 doses have been used, leaving an estimated stock of about 110,000 doses.

Team Leader Ko explained, "There are stock discrepancies among cities, counties, districts, and usage institutions, which may cause temporary shortages. We are monitoring this and working to resolve the discrepancies."

The health authorities also expressed a stance that additional imports of oral treatments can be considered. Team Leader Ko said, "The currently scheduled domestic imports are being pushed for early import through negotiations," and added, "We may consider additional purchases in the future based on the stock status of oral treatments."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.