New Tender Cycle Publicized for Procurement of Medications for Ministry of Health and Wellness

Meanwhile, The Ministry of Health and Wellness has publicized its tender cycle for those who procure medications and supplies for its various pharmacies throughout the country. Today Minister of Health Kevin Bernard told News Five that bids have already been made but that the list of importers has to be reviewed to ensure they can efficiently provide the medications and supplies.

Kevin Bernard

Kevin Bernard, Minister of Health & Wellness

“We made a commitment as a ministry that we want to ensure that all bids are collected by, the latest, twenty-seventh, twenty-eighth of February. Those have to come in, my Tender Committee has been selected, which involves various stakeholders as well. Those will be reviewed within a two-week span, so that by the end of March, the latest end of March, we’re already signing contracts so that supplies can start to come in. So that when these tenders that were delayed come in and are exhausted, we already have stocks in replace to replace and to continue and that is the cycle that we are talking about to ensure that we improve so that when the new phase – the mid-year comes again, in June, we start again that cycle so that there’s continuity in supply of medication. Now we cannot control what is manufactured out there and what is not manufactured and the number of medications that’s manufactured. We send out these bids, these tenders and then Supplies are obligated to ensure that what you got in your contract you’re supplying to the ministry. Our responsibility is to ensure that those medications are of quality and that’s the reason we are pressing on our drug inspectorate limit to ensure that they go out and inspect those medications on a timely basis. We have to review those lists. Like everybody, they have the opportunity to go and pick up a package, you receive your tender and submit your bid. Now if the Committee feels that we did not get timely delivery with the supply and there was a better supplier, that’s an option that the committee will decide. I don’t make those decisions. The committee makes those decisions and then it’s taken up for final decision and final approval to the Contractor General, then the Ministry of Finance.”