In Durango they ask that the federal government guarantee the supply of psychiatric drugs
Given the concern about the shortage of drugs to treat psychiatric illnesses and the increase in the number of suicides, the federal government was given approval to implement a self-sufficiency plan for pharmacochemicals and strategic or critical mental health drugs.
“There is no public policy focused on ending this grave crisis and what is being done in a line as fragile as health is criminal; To psychiatric drugs, we must add those needed for patients with cancer, diabetes or high blood pressure,” deputy Sughi Torres said in a statement.
“It is very risky for patients to become unstable by interrupting their treatment,” he said.
The key psychotropic drugs he reported being in short supply are those that stabilize attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD); Antiepileptics, antidepressants and antipsychotics which treat hallucinations, delusions and symptoms of dementia. But he said there are also concerns about lithium shortages, as it is the only option for treating resistant schizophrenia in children and adolescents, which affects 4.9 million people in Mexico.
He added that the drug shortage crisis does not end in Mexico and is the product of the federal government’s inability to implement and execute an effective and efficient drug supply program.
“We need drugs to treat mental health, we can’t wait any longer,” he said.
During his speech, he explained that suspension of these drugs has an effect on the relapse of mental illness and, in most cases, leads to withdrawal symptoms that can be dangerous.
He recalled that in 2022 mental health was ranked first in suffering, a situation that was not the case in previous years; A scenario that worsened earlier this year due to the suspension that the Federal Health Authority imposed on the company Psicofarma, in addition to the fact that more than 77 suicides have been recorded in Durango.
Therefore, he assumed that the situation had stabilized, considering the Mexican Institute of Social Security did not fill more than 34 million prescriptions.
