Ministers Clash Over COVID-19 Rapid Saliva Test Distribution in Morocco

Since the appearance of the coronavirus, the relationship between the Minister of Health, Khalid Aït Taleb and the Minister of Industry, Trade and Green and Digital Economy, Moulay Hafid Elalamy has been put to the test. The acts of one are not approved by the other. Currently, it is the issue of Covid-19 rapid saliva tests that divides the two senior officials.

Using his prerogatives, MHE accelerated the process of importing rapid saliva tests and distributing them in points of sale, including pharmacies. An act he took following the authorization to market these tests. However, this act did not please the Minister of Health. The latter would have mobilized the Directorate of Medicines and Pharmacy, which in turn requested a health inspection, following which the rapid saliva tests were removed from the shelves of pharmacies and all other points of sale, reports Assabah.

The withdrawal of these tests has provoked the anger of pharmacists. According to them, the lobbies of medical analysis laboratories have been favored to the detriment of patients who no longer have access to these tests at reasonable prices.