Colombo, Feb 12 (IANS): Sri Lankan Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella on Sunday announced that all non-essential and non-urgent surgeries at government hospitals have been postponed.

He said that essential and urgent surgeries will be carried out without hindrance and that the measure is only temporary, Xinhua news agency reported.

The decision comes in the wake of Sri Lanka Medical Association, the national professional medical association, warning that the health sector would face a serious crisis within a few weeks, if shortages of medicines, surgical equipment, and chemicals used in labs are not addressed now.

Sri Lanka has been facing a medical shortage since 2022 due to its balance of payment crisis, and the price of medicine has also gone up last year due to rising inflation.

Reports said that Sri Lanka relies on imports for about 85 per cent of its pharmaceutical needs and about 80 per cent of its medical supplies.