The Health Ministry yesterday decided to withdraw the use of two types of locally manufactured aspirin from all government hospitals based on the recommendations of the National Medicine Regulatory Authority (NMRA).

The NMRA made this recommendation following comprehensive investigations done on samples of a number of categories of aspirin.

Tests have confirmed that these two categories are substandard. However, Ministry officials say that the withdrawal of these two categories of aspirin will not lead to a shortage of aspirin in government hospitals as they have other categories in stock.