LAHORE    -   Asia’s largest treatment center Mayo hospital is currently undergoing a severe financial crisis as Rs 1.25 billion is required to maintain supply of medicines only, it has been learnt. Hospital sources confided to The Nation that due to non-availability of medicines, Mayo Hospital is facing problems in treating patients. Also, Essential sur­geries are not being done due to shortage of new anesthetics and life-saving drugs. In order to deal with the crisis, the hospital administration has also requested the Punjab government to provide additional funds to pay the arrears, they said.

The sources said that the hospital management was yet to pay the arrears of Rs 1 billion in respect of medicines purchased in in the last one year and a half. Because of non-payment, the hospital is facing a delay in the supply of medicines from the companies and contractors to the hospital.

Sources further disclosed that the companies and the contractors had halted the supply of essen­tial life-saving medi­cines, equipment and other resources to the hospital when its outstanding arrears surged over Rs 1bn. “The hospital is facing a serious challenge of acute shortage of important live saving drugs for critical patients because the contractors and medicine supplying companies have demanded the institute to pay off it’s ar­rears first, in order to get further supply and services’ ‘, they said. Speaking to The Nation, Punjab Health Minister Doctor Yasmin Rashid contradicted the story saying there was no such shortage of medicines, anesthesia and other es­sential life saving medicine in the Mayo hospi­tal. She claimed that even Services Hospital and Jinnah hospital were receiving supply of essen­tial medicines from Mayo hospital as the insti­tute had additional medicines.