Shortage of Tamiflu drug for children ill with flu to persist until June in Hong Kong, Swiss manufacturer warns
- Roche, which produces solution form of Tamiflu, says demand in city surged following end of mask mandate
- Private doctors warn they have or will run out of medication soon amid flu season
The Swiss manufacturer of Tamiflu has warned that a shortage of the medication being given to children ill with the flu will persist until June in Hong Kong due to an unexpected surge in demand following the end of the city’s mask mandate last month.
Roche, which produces the solution form of Tamiflu, on Saturday confirmed the drug shortage as paediatricians in the city warned that children with chronic illnesses could suffer serious complications if they were infected with both Covid-19 and Influenza A at the same time. One doctor said it was unclear how long the peak of the flu season would last this year given it began later than usual.
The drug manufacturer said there would be inadequate supply of the solution form of Tamiflu until June this year as demand had risen after Hong Kong ended its mask-wearing mandate on March 1. The confirmation came after some private doctors had said they had or would run out of the medication soon.
Roche added it would work with the local health authorities to minimise the impact on medical workers and patients.
“We are taking all practicable steps to address the out-of-stock issue soon,” the company said.
It advised pharmacists and patients to dissolve the contents of the capsule version of the drug in water if necessary until the bottled solution became available again.
The pharmaceutical giant maintained that the supply of Tamiflu capsules had remained “very stable” in Hong Kong and other parts of the world, and it would continue to monitor demand for the drug.
