'Mad rush' of COVID-19 patients to Hyderabad leading to 'discrepancy' in numbers, says Telangana Minister
Hyderabad, May 13: Telangana on Wednesday claimed there is discrepancy in COVID-19 cases in the Southern state as there was "mad rush" of patients from neighbouring states and requestedthe Centre to make allocations of oxygen and Remdesivir based on number of beds available in the state rather than population.
Telangana Finance Minister T Harish Rao, who participated in a video conference with Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, said the number of COVID-19 patients from outside outpaces that of within, according to an official release.
"With
Telangana
State
becoming
a
medical
Hub,
people
from
the
neighbouring
states
are
rushing
to
Hyderabad
and
their
numbers
are
far
more
than
the
patients
within
the
State.
Hence
there
was
mad
rush
of
patients.
People
from
AP,
Karnataka,
and
Maharashtra,
who
have
tested
positive
in
their
states,
are
coming
to
Hyderabad
for
the
treatment."
"Hence
there
is
discrepancy
in
the
Covid
positive
cases
number," the
release
quoted
Harish
Rao
as
saying.
Rao said the state government had enhanced the basic health infrastructure considerably by the time the second wave arrived. The number of beds in the state was tripled to over 50,000 during the COVID-19 second wave.
The Union Minister expressed satisfaction over the decrease in the intensity of the coronavirus in Telangana and assured that supply of Oxygen, medicines and injections like Remdesivir, vaccines, testing kits, ventilators and other COVID-19 related drugs and essentials would be done immediately and the state's quota would also be increased in this regard, the release said.
Harish Rao explained the curtailment measures taken by the state government and urged Vardhan to enhance Telangana's quota and supply the required quantity of essential materials immediately.
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The Telangana minister said the oxygen quota to the state should be increased to 600 tonnes per day from the existing 450 tonnes while supply of Remdesivir injections should be increased to 20,000 vials per day.
Since patients are coming to Telangana by Air Ambulances, the supply of Tocilizumab injections should be increased from 810 to 1,500 per day, he said, adding the state needs 2 lakh testing kits per day.
The state needs 1.29 crore COVID-19 vaccines in order to inoculate people above 45 years of age and there is an urgent need of 13 lakh vaccines till end of this month, as part of the second dose and it should be supplied immediately, the release added.