Congressmen warn of shortage in medicines
(GFR Media)While Puerto Ricans continue to rebuild from the devastation of Hurricane Maria, they have continued to face a growing number of obstacles in the new year. With flu season in full effect, Congressmen in the US and Puerto Rico, are asking the current US presidential administration what are they doing in order to deal with the shortage of medical supplies. With 30% of the island still without electricity, they are not able to contribute medical supplies to the US like they were able to, pre-hurricane.
Puerto Rico is responsible for 10% of the medicines consumed in the United States, and with the condition the island is currently in, they will not be able to produce these medicines especially with the lack of resources.
“In a letter, 29 senators and 63 congressmen asked the head of the FDA, Scott Gottlieb, to know what steps are taken to avoid a lack of medical supplies, such as bags of saline solution. The legislators recalled that in Puerto Rico – where around 30% of the population still does not have electricity – almost 10% of the medicines consumed in the United States are produced.”
The letter penned to the head of the FDA, asks questions regarding what measures are in place to avoid new shortages of medicine, and if the government plans to approve new suppliers and if said approval will be permanent or temporary. Senators from both sides of the aisle are working together to ensure that the FDA is going to take the necessary steps to prevent a public health crisis across the US and Puerto Rico.
When epidemics, like the flu, sweep across the nation it’s important to think about the implications of relying on resources that are produced in far away places. While the US can’t produce everything they will need to face nationwide illnesses like the the flu, it should be the responsibility of lawmakers to have contingency plans in place, when the countries we obtain resources from fall on hard times. Having plans in place could make the difference of saving hundreds even thousands of lives.
With the writing of this letter to the FDA, lawmakers in the US and Puerto Rico are still waiting for an answer to the questions of the shortages that both countries are facing.