Keralam’s sustained battle against the deadly Nipah virus is a defining chapter in its impressive healthcare journey. Its handling of the first outbreak in 2018 and subsequent occurrences has earned global recognition. However, that hard-won reputation is now under serious challenge following allegations that expired doses of the antiviral drug Remdesivir were administered to Nipah patients between 2023 and 2025, during the previous LDF regime. The UDF government has constituted a medical board to ascertain whether the expired drugs contributed to the six Nipah deaths during this period, triggering a sharp backlash from the LDF and a rebuttal from health experts.
The controversy offers a much-needed reality check for Keralam’s celebrated public healthcare system. It raises serious questions about inventory management, treatment protocols and administrative accountability. The state government procured 3,000 vials of Remdesivir in June 2021, with an expiry date of May 30, 2023. Data from Kozhikode Medical College show that 102 of these vials were used in 2023-24, 34 in 2024-25 and 10 in 2025-26. Health Minister K Muraleedharan, who flagged the possible lapses, said that the packages carried an expiry date but no manufacturing date, and some stock was labelled ‘For clinical trial use’. Dismissing the suspicion, critical care specialist Dr A S Anoop Kumar said none of the six Nipah fatalities between 2023 and 2025 had received Remdesivir from the medical college, as all were diagnosed only after death.
Attributing deaths to expired medication without indisputable evidence would be irresponsible. Nipah is an exceptionally dangerous infection, and the effectiveness of drugs remains far from conclusive. But that does not make the questions any less serious. Why was the medical college retaining out-of-date medication? Was any of it administered to patients? Any lapse in procurement, storage or inventory management must be identified and responsibility fixed. If this leads to a better treatment protocol, that would be a bonus for a state battling recurring outbreaks.
However, accountability must not become a pretext for discrediting a system built over decades. Nor should a serious public health issue degenerate into a political slugfest. Keralam’s healthcare system must remain open to scrutiny precisely because its achievements are worth protecting. The priority must be to establish facts, address systemic deficiencies and strengthen public confidence, not to score political points.