Noman Mosharef :
In some cases, RoActemra Injections are used for the Covid-19 treatment. Black market syndicates have advertised exaggeratedly about its effectiveness on social media as the medicine is rare. As such 7/8 times higher price is demanded when patients search for it.
Although the public health experts have expressed their doubt about the advertised effectiveness of the RoActemra Injection, used for novel coronavirus treatment, they have no idea.
A fraud gang has been selling rare RoActemra Injection by attractive advertisement on social media where they demand Tk 1.5 lakh for each vial against actual rate of Tk 20,000-25,000.
Recently Directorate General of Drug Administration (DGDA) and National Security Intelligence (NSI) arrested three of the fraud group.
Switzerland based Roche Pharmaceutical’s product
Tocilizumab family’s RoActemra Injection’s Bangladesh authorized agent is Radiant Pharmaceutical.
Although some positive results have been found in many countries around the world, experts are still unsure about the effectiveness of this expensive injection.
In the case of dying patients, the specialist doctors try in various ways, in which case, even if RoActemra Injection is applied, the doctor says that there is a specific policy for this purpose.
Dr Syed Atiqul Haq, Professor of Rheumatology at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) said, there are some private hospitals in our country owned by some dishonest businessmen. They sell necessary medicine to patients from their store charging abnormal price. In that situation, patients’ relatives felt helpless to their rate.
Dr Atiqul said, before injecting RoActemra to any patient, doctors have to know whether the patients had any viral infection records or not. Because RoActemra sometimes increase the infection.
He said, authority should control action against them, those who are advertising and selling RoActemra Injection in black market and charged more.
Dr Md Motiul Islam, ICU (Intensive care unit) Chief of Asgar Ali Hospital said, the use of Tocilizumab is not must for Covid-19 patients. Sometimes its action on a patients’ body is positive and sometimes patients’ get worse.
He said, RoActemra Injection’s random use is not expected. It should have a policy to use RoActemra Injection.
