As most countries around the world, Mauritius has not been spared from COVID-19. The country has been under national confinement since 20 March and on a sanitary curfew since 24 March until 1st June 2020. The first cases were confirmed on 18th March 2020. We are currently at 332 cases – 319 recovered, 3 active and 10 deceased.

As you know anti-malarial drugs chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine have been the therapeutic options against COVID-19. While the drugs have antiviral and anti-inflammatory effects on patients affected by the virus, at this point, there is no definitive evidence that these drugs work to treat COVID-19. These drugs are still being used for the treatment of Malaria as well as for the treatment of Lupus and Rheumatoid Arthritis. Immediately after these drugs were promoted as possible treatments for Covid 19 and the situation has led to an exacerbated global shortage of the drugs. This was the case also for Mauritius. 

What you need to know is that in Mauritius we have both public (free) and private healthcare system. In the private sector there was a rush for Hydroxychloroquine and people bought and stored drug unnecessarily. Very soon pharmacies reported they were running out of the drug. We at Lupus Alert intervened quite early. Since the beginning of January, we had advised to have a 90-day supply of any medication they need to ensure that they have access to treatment, even if they need to go into self-isolation or quarantine. We also ensured that the local hospitals had a good supply of Hydroxychloroquine and that there was a control on the drug. Only patients with a prescription could get the drug. We encouraged the patients following their treatment in private to open a file at their local hospitals if they did not have Hydroxychloroquine. We also made a public appeal to the Mauritian citizens to spare a thought for the people with chronic diseases who actually have a real need for Hydroxychloroquine. To ensure that patients take extra care and precautions, we regularly keep in touch with them through phone calls. This helps them to maintain a positive outlook. 

Other Lupus organisations in Africa have reported a raise in the price of hydroxychloroquine as there no measures in place to enforcing disciplinary actions. With India donating the drug to 55 countries including some countries in Africa and later lifting the ban on export of the drug have helped in the fight against the pandemic as well as ensuring that there’s no lost of lives to those who uses the drug as part of their treatment. 

Published on 14 May 2020.