Don’t stockpile medicines, we have enough, govt says

Health officials on Friday called on people not to stockpile medicines that can relieve the symptoms of upper respiratory tract infection, saying the overall supply of these drugs is stable.

They noted that there has been a sharp increase in demand for drugs that could lower fever, relieve pain as well as cough syrup, in particular certain brands of medicine containing paracetamol, as the number of Covid-19 cases in Hong Kong keep rising.

Officials said they had been in contact with suppliers, local manufacturers as well as pharmacy associations and were told that the overall supply of the medicines continues to be stable, but the supply of individual brands may be temporarily tight.

They said they had requested suppliers and local manufacturers to increase supply to meet the needs of the people, adding that if necessary they will consider buying these medicines from the mainland.