Radio Cadena Agramonte emisiora de Camagüey
Havana, Nov 23.- The lack of medicines that Cuba suffers today has as one of the main factors the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed and intensified by the United States government.
The non-availability of raw materials and inputs necessary for production represents 95 percent of the shortages of medicines this year, while the remaining 5 percent were related to stoppages in production plants, due to breakages or maintenance, Eduardo indicated. Martínez Díaz, president of the BioCubafarma business group.
In the case of financing for raw materials, he pointed out that, although we have the money, there are problems in paying suppliers, due to the banks' refusal to work with Cuba, due to the blockade, a unilateral US policy which has also impacted some suppliers who have stopped supplying, to which is added a global deficit of raw materials and pharmaceutical materials.
One of the things our enemy does is prevent foreign currency from entering the country. “For us this is one of the day-to-day work priorities, because if we do not have that income we cannot later acquire the raw materials, and our factories produce, and our workers have income. For that reason, we must look for permanent alternatives,” said Martínez Díaz.
Currently, of the more than a thousand medications produced by BioCubaFarma, some 795 are destined for the national Health system, and 383 make up the basic table of Cuban pharmacies.
With 122 production lines, the Group is oriented towards development, with 11 recapitalized lines and 19 new lines in the last five years.
Among the 391 research projects currently being carried out, they are also making progress in improving the formulation of products such as Heberprot, formulations against neurodegenerative diseases, and a vaccine candidate against dengue. (Text and photo: Granma)
