Accounting for one-fourth of all new TB cases globally, India has been successful in reducing the incidence of the disease by 21.1 per cent between 1999 and 2014, but the prevalence of a more virulent, multidrug resistant TB (MDR-TB) is forcing the government to wean patients from the private sector to the public health system.
Concerned by the lacunae in treatment procedures in the private sector, which the Centre says could foster the prevalence of MDR-TB, the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has decided to start daily drug therapy for TB patients in 100 select districts in the next few months. This new treatment protocol, which involves shifting from the current thrice-a-week dosage, is being opted for after experts found the old system ineffective and also a possible cause for MDR-TB.
A Health Ministry official said during pilot project studies carried out at Mehsana in Gujarat and Patna in Bihar, it was noticed that 52 per cent of the patients in Patna preferred private care. “There are many patients under private care who are not regular in their treatment. Skipping drugs or leaving the treatment midway can lead to MDR-TB or in the worst case, even death. At the centres run by the government we give drugs for free and ensure follow-up. We have now decided to start daily drug therapy in backward districts,” said the official.
1,000 deaths a dayThough India pats itself for bringing down the cases of TB each year — prevalence has decreased from 217 per 100,000 per year in 1999 to 171 per 100,000 per year in 2014 — the number of deaths, nearly a 1000 every day, is still alarming. On the occasion of World TB Day, Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda on Tuesday said there was no shortage of money to meet the government’s plans to curb and treat the disease.
