Health CS Summons KEMSA Officials Over Ksh1.2B Expired Drugs

Cabinet Secretary for Health Sicily Kariuki, on Friday, summoned Kenya Medical Supplies Authority (KEMSA) officials to Afya house to explain why drugs worth Ksh1.2 Billion expired under their watch.



Reports indicate that the officials were questioned over the short expiry of various drugs and commodities in its warehouses.



KEMSA Chief Executive Officer Jonah Mwangi alongside officials from finance, procurement, and communication departments were all present at the crisis meeting.



According to KEMSA’s inventory, drugs and other supplies worth about Ksh2.5 Million have already expired, while the agency has about one month to ensure that others worth an estimated Ksh213.4 Million reach patients.

The records showed there were 44 drugs and other medical supplies worth about Ksh213.4 Million that expire by July 2019.



106 drugs and supplies worth an estimated Ksh1 billion have a shelf-life of only about seven months, which is a relatively short period as per best pharmaceutical practices.



Some of the expired drugs and commodities stored in the agency's warehouses include HIV test kits, Lopinavir/Ritonavir, Abacavir/Lamivudine, Tenofovir /Dolutegravir, and Omeprazole capsules.



The affected drugs were sourced from the Global Fund and USAID.



This comes even as public hospitals across the country grapple with a severe shortage of drugs and other key medical supplies.

This is not the first time the State agency has been on the spot over the expiry of drugs in its stores.



 In September 2018, KEMSA told Parliament that strikes by medical personnel in 2016/17 led to the expiry of drugs whose value was estimated at Ksh252 Million.

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