Health Ministry asks states, UTs for real-time update of availability and consumption of HCQ

By Priyanka Sharma
New Delhi, [India], May 26 : The Union Health Ministry has directed all States and Union Territories (UTs) to update the availability and consumption of hydroxychloroquine or HCQ tablets on the national COVID-19 portal as real-time data. The Ministry said that this will help it to chalk out a further action plan and to provide more HCQ tablets to the States and UTs when it is required.
In a letter to all states and UTs, a senior official has stated: "I would like to bring to your notice that a number of states/UTs are not filling/updating the data of HCQ on the national COVID19 portal as the real-time data. I would request you to please get the data of availability and consumption of HCQ as this will help to chalk out a further action plan and also to make available more HCQ tablets to the states/ UTs when it is required."
The Health Ministry is centrally procuring HCQ (200mg to be used in proportionality in lieu of 400 mg tablets) and distributing to the states/UTs through the government medical store depot in New Delhi. In addition, the states/UTs and various institutes/bodies have directly procured HCQ, which is supplied by the Central government, from manufactures.
"All states are advised to administer HCQ tablets to the selected categories of frontline workers strictly in accordance with revised guidelines issued on May 22, 2020 from the stock of HCQ already available with them," it said.
Recently, the Central Government has revised the guidelines for HCQ as prophylaxis. The government has now expanded the use of HCQ as prophylaxis to healthcare and other front line workers deployed in non-COVID and COVID areas.
The Joint Monitoring Group and National Task Force (NTF) have now recommended the prophylactic use of HCQ in the following categories: (i) All asymptomatic healthcare workers involved in containment and treatment of COVID19 and asymptomatic healthcare workers working in non-COVID hospitals/non-COVID areas of COVID hospitals/blocks, (ii) Asymptomatic frontline workers, such as surveillance workers deployed in containment zones and paramilitary/police personnel involved in COVID-19 related activities, (iii) Asymptomatic household contacts of laboratory-confirmed cases.
On Sunday, the WHO temporarily suspended the clinical trials of HCQ over safety concerns on the basis of emerging evidence. "The Executive Group has implemented a temporary pause of the hydroxychloroquine arm within the Solidarity Trial while the data is reviewed by the Data Safety Monitoring Board," WHO tweeted.
HCQ, as it is commonly called, is an anti-malaria drug that is also used to treat other autoimmune diseases. It shot to prominence recently after receiving an endorsement from the President of the United States Donald Trump as a potential cure to the Coronavirus. Recently, Trump stated that he too had begun taking it for prophylactic use.