Drug stock outs have dominated many discussions that look at barriers to treatment access for communicable infectious diseases. The main reason for concern when stock outs occur is mostly due to the propagation of drug resistance as a result of failing regimens.
So when the custodian of a taxpaying citizen facing the dangers caused by stock outs commits sins of omission or commission due to laxity, denialism and self-interest, there are bound to be justified reactions from the affected. At the recently concluded 44^th International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Diseases conference held on the 30^th October to the 3^rd November in Paris, Treatment Action Group and Global TB activists exposed the inadequacies of governments & their national TB programmes and particularly shamed the Indian government for failing to acknowledge that there are anti TB stock outs in the country. The Indian stock outs are due to a below par supply management and monitoring system that ignores the involvement of civil society and affected communities.
Following this action https://vimeo.com/78345486 also reported in key local media outlets in India http://m.timesofindia.com/india/Indians-booed-at-global-meet-for-genocide-of-TB-patients/articleshow/25148964.cms, it is hoped that the momentum to pressure the Indian government (and for that matter other governments that have broken/absent/suboptimal supply management and monitoring systems) will be maintained by local activists who have over the years demanded for an end to HIV & TB medicine stock outs. Global effort from comrades all over the world will continue providing support to fellow activist demanding for an end to HIV & TB stock outs.
Suffice it to say that humanity will never achieve any Zero targets to HIV and TB if there is no commitment by governments to its citizenry in the spirit of partnership to end stock outs caused by broken or failing supply management and monitoring systems. Denialism needs to end and so does dictatorship, corruption, non-inclusion policies and practice and above all governments need to give meaning to their rhetoric to include civil society in their national responses to HIV and TB.
Bactrin Killingo
Senior Knowledge Officer
ITPC