China facing shortage of heart drug

China is facing a shortage of protamine sulfate, a life-saving heart drug used in post-cardiac surgeries, experts said. The nationwide shortage has lasted at least three months, China Daily reported Tuesday, quoting experts who have called for a national drug-control system. Doctors in Beijing said some specialized hospitals, which perform hundreds of cardiac operations every month, have been paralyzed because of the shortage of protamine sulfate, which is administered after surgery to reverse the anticoagulant effects of heparin. The shortage was first noticed in July in Hubei Province and since then similar shortages have been reported in several other provinces. The report said the Chinese Ministry of Health has said it is the responsibility of the State Food and Drug Administration to handle the issue. However, the report said, a spokesman at State Food and Drug Administration said his agency is only responsible for quality and not supply of medicines. The report quoted industry insiders as saying one reason for the shortage is its low profit margin discourages companies from mass producing the drug. "Some companies can't earn enough to recover their costs, therefore it is almost impossible to maintain their enthusiasm for continuing production," said an official of the Shanghai Pharmaceutical Trade Association. An attorney with a Beijing law firm said the country should have a unified system to guarantee normal supply of widely used medicines.