Medication shortages are a growing global concern, impacting patient health and well-being.

The US is experiencing increasing drug shortages, with 323 drugs affected in early 2024, including 32 chemotherapy drugs.

The main causes of drug shortages are manufacturing and quality problems, high demand, and a lack of industry transparency.

A drug shortage affects around half a million patients, often lasting over two years, due to supply chain gaps and downtime.

The FDA monitors the US drug supply chain, which is vulnerable to production and quality issues due to 80% of active ingredients being manufactured overseas.

The EU faces a shortage of children's antibiotics, prompting calls for a coordinated response and an EU medicine reserve.

France reported 4,925 drug shortages in 2023, with 44% of the population affected by shortages in 2024.

Hospitals face severe drug shortages, with 99% of pharmacists reporting shortages and 309 drugs currently in short supply.

One in three health systems delay or ration care due to shortages, including over a dozen cancer drugs like cisplatin and carboplatin.

Cisplatin is prescribed for 10-20% of cancer patients, while 93% of academic cancer centers face carboplatin shortages.

The European Parliament adopted a pharmaceutical reform position, which may require EU states to hold safety stocks of medicine to mitigate shortages.

US drug shortages are largely caused by a fragmented supply chain, requiring a coordinated response and changes to the pharmaceutical business model.

The FDA needs more power to access drug shortage information and manufacturers must be more transparent to mitigate medication shortages.

Drug shortages significantly impact healthcare systems, harming patients and causing pharmacy sales losses, particularly in Egypt where shortages of vital medicines have worsened since 2019.

Taiwan is experiencing a shortage of 131 medicines, including amoxicillin and acetaminophen, due to low drug prices.

Medication shortages are a growing global concern, impacting patient health and well-being.

Title:

Content: General Supervision
Elham Aboul Fath
Editor-in-Chief
Thank you for your patience.
General Supervision
Elham Aboul Fath
Editor-in-Chief
Thank you for your patience.
An Unexpected Catastrophe in the World ’ s Largest Country: The Complete Story of U.S. Drug Shortages
The deficit is at a record level.
According to data from the American Society of Health System Pharmacists and the University of Utah Drug Information Service, organizations began tracking drug shortages for the first time in 2001. Steady since 2021 – now reaching a record high of 323 drugs in the first three months of 2024.
Paul Abramowitz, CEO of the American Society of Health System Pharmacists, wrote in a blog post on Thursday: “It ’ s been a long time to end drug shortages, ” and wrote:“ All drug classes are vulnerable to shortages, some of the most worrisome shortages include sterile injectable generic drugs, including cancer chemotherapy drugs and emergency drugs stored in hospital vans and procedural areas. It is dangerous for doctors and patients. ”
In addition to the 32 chemotherapy drugs that are deficient, the five categories of drugs with the greatest deficiency include central nervous system stimulants, antimicrobials, hormonal agents, and intravenous fluids. [1] The Drug Deficiency Database maintained by the American Society of Health System Pharmacists and the University of Utah is based on voluntary reports from practitioners, patients, and others that have been confirmed by manufacturers. The U.S. drug is in short supply, because it captures broader effects on service providers and patients.
The crisis has lasted a year and a half.
More than half of the treatment shortages have lasted for more than two years, according to an analysis by health consultancy IQVIA, and the average shortage affects at least half a million patients, many of them elderly, according to the US Office of Health and Human Services under the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, which shared its analysis with Congress in May.
Growing demand can play a role in drug shortages, as with the recent shortage of weight-loss drugs, but often manufacturing and quality problems, such as supply chain gaps and downtime, are the root cause. And varied.
But the American Society of Health System Pharmacists has “serious concerns ” about parts of this proposal, especially financial sanctions imposed on hospitals that lack the resources to comply with the recommendations, Abramowitz wrote:“ We all know that managing shortages is not enough and is not a sustainable solution to the worsening crisis, and there is still a lot of work to be done at the federal level to fix the root causes of drug shortages. ”
Why Shortage Occurs
Shortages can be caused by high demand, as with the recent shortage of weight-loss drugs, but this is not usually the main problem.
The FDA also blames manufacturing and quality problems, supply chain gaps, and downtime, and Dr. Emily Tucker, a drug shortage expert and an assistant professor of industrial engineering at Clemson University, says that when there is an indication of shortages, large health systems often also proactively place large orders, adding to the system ’ s stress.
“I don ’ t blame anyone.
“When I talk to all the stakeholders – whether it ’ s wholesalers, manufacturers, or the government – everyone wants this problem to end, ” she said.
Lack of transparency
Dr. Julie Grallo, chief medical officer and executive vice president of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, told the House Committee earlier that the shortage puts providers in a terrible position: “The drug shortage crisis is forcing providers to make impossible choices, and it is also hindering the development of new drugs. Health drugs are purchased only on a price basis, and manufacturers do not have to disclose the source of their acquisition of the ingredients.
The shortage of this generic chemical drug came due to the closure of one factory in India that manufactures the active ingredient after a surprise FDA inspection found “significant quality issues, ” says Jarallo:“ We didn ’ t know, and there was no transparency regarding the company ’ s supply of the majority of active pharmaceutical ingredients to all manufacturers across the board.
Knowing this in advance, we could have responded much faster, ” Dr. Steven Schundlemeyer, director of the PRIME Institute of the University of Minnesota School of Pharmacy, which focuses on economic and management issues, told the committee that as with defense contractors in the United States, New Zealand requires manufacturers to disclose their suppliers, and that information is required.
Easily accessible in the database.
Related Topics

The US is experiencing increasing drug shortages, with 323 drugs affected in early 2024, including 32 chemotherapy drugs.

The main causes of drug shortages are manufacturing and quality problems, high demand, and a lack of industry transparency.

A drug shortage affects around half a million patients, often lasting over two years, due to supply chain gaps and downtime.

The FDA monitors the US drug supply chain, which is vulnerable to production and quality issues due to 80% of active ingredients being manufactured overseas.

Title:

Content: US supply chain crisis continues, FDA points to 111 drug shortages
Global Social Hotspot 16: 35 2021 / 12 / 05
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The supply chain crisis in the United States continues, and many goods are facing shortages.
The US media said that the US pharmacies have a number of critical prescription drugs in stock. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) pointed out that about 111 drugs are out of stock in the United States. The FDA stressed that it will continue to take measures to monitor the supply chain.
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The Federal Reserve warned on Wednesday that large parts of the United States had begun to be affected by supply chain disruptions and labor shortages last month.
According to the FDA website, 111 drugs are out of stock in the United States, including the heart disease drug digoxin injection, the chemical drug Dacarbazine and some antibiotics.
The authorities say there are many reasons for the shortage, including production problems, quality problems, drugs and even the suspension of production.
According to the FDA, about 80% of the manufacturers of active pharmaceutical ingredients are located overseas, and the manufacturers have provided the FDA with most of the drug shortage information.
The Administration will also work closely with these manufacturers to address the drug shortage.
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Long Island Newspaper Newsday quoted Tom D'Angelo, president of the New York State Association of Pharmacists, as saying the shipping of a large number of medicines, including those for common blood pressure and for the treatment of colds and flu, was blocked.
Because of supply chain problems, the owner of a New York drugstore said there were fewer brands for some drugs, including Ibuprofen.
The National Association of Community Pharmacists (NCPA) released a survey last month that found that most non-chain pharmacies are struggling to fill employee vacancies and cope with supply chain disruptions.
Sixty percent of pharmacies surveyed said they were dealing with supply chain disruptions, and nearly 70 percent said it was difficult to fill staff vacancies.
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The EU faces a shortage of children's antibiotics, prompting calls for a coordinated response and an EU medicine reserve.

Title:

Content: The Chairman of the World Medical Association (WMA) Frank Ulrich Montgomery, against the background of a shortage of certain types of drugs, called for the creation of a pan-European reserve of medicines.
This opinion he expressed in an interview published on Monday to the media group Funke, reports Day.Az with reference to TASS.
Montgomery noted that the shortage of medicines has been increasing for more than 10 years.
“The reason is misplaced economic incentives for the pharmaceutical industry, ” he said.
“For consumer goods that are not subject to patent protection, margins are estimated to be low, ‘ big pharmaceuticals ’ are no longer interested in these drugs and are shifting production to low-wage countries such as China or India.
If there is a factory burned down, the main substance is lost or there are defects in quality - suddenly the medicine will disappear all over the world, "said the head of the WMA.
A reserve of drugs at EU level as a “commitment to the pharmaceutical industry controlled and managed by the state and the medical community, ” according to Montgomery, should be created immediately.
In addition, politicians should return production sites to Europe with appropriate economic conditions.
Supply chains must be legally secured by several drug manufacturers.
Last week, pediatricians from several European countries wrote a letter to their health ministers condemning the shortage of medicines.
The German Ministry of Health recently officially announced a shortage of juices with antibiotics for children - this means that import rules can be relaxed.
The World Medical Association is an international organization, which includes more than 100 national associations of doctors, including the Russian one.
It is engaged in the development of ethical standards in medical activities, mandatory for doctors of all countries.
The association was established in 1947.

France reported 4,925 drug shortages in 2023, with 44% of the population affected by shortages in 2024.

Title:

Content: French health groups put forward proposals to limit the damage of worsening drug shortages

Medicines such as cough syrup, lozenges and ointment are seen on a table in an apartment in Berlin, Tuesday, December 20, 2022. Copyright Stephanie Pilick/dpa via AP
Copyright Stephanie Pilick/dpa via AP
By Lauren Chadwick
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Pharmaceutical companies’ lack of transparency leads to rising drug prices and less control over public resources, the group of health organisations say.

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A group of French organisations have called for more transparency from pharmaceutical companies as drug shortages increase.

In a joint report, 14 civil society organisations outlined their recommendations to solve a “situation that has only worsened” since 2018.

The French medicines regulator signalled 4,925 drug shortages in 2023, compared to 3,761 in 2022 and 2,160 in 2021.

A 2024 survey from France Assos Santé, which represents patients, found that 44 per cent of people in France said they had faced a drug shortage this year.

One of the pharmacy unions in France has even planned a strike at the end of the month over drug shortages and what they say is worsening access to care.

Each health organisation contributed an article with recommendations for dealing with the drug shortages.

The League Against Cancer urged complete transparency on drug shortages and potential substitutions for health professionals.

They also called for monitoring of medicine stocks and their location in the country to guarantee equal access.

The organisation found in a survey published in February that 78 per cent of health professionals in oncology had been faced with a drug shortage.

Drug shortages or delays have led to anxiety among cancer patients, lost time, and worsening symptoms, the organisation said.

France Assos Santé, meanwhile, wrote that an urgent response should not be to support “the industrial sector which bears serious responsibilities” for abandoning the production of less profitable drugs, relocating drug production, and keeping insufficient medicine stocks.

They would like any cost increases justified by production costs or the risk of withdrawing a drug from the market due to it being unprofitable. They called for cost evaluations to be made public.

Their concerns also range from the use of public money to bring drug production to Europe to new government plans to prevent shortages.

Some changes at the EU level criticised

Last year, the European Commission announced several measures to reform the pharmaceutical industry and address critical drug shortages.

The European Parliament went on to adopt a position on pharmaceutical reform last month, that included “incentives for innovation” and an effort to limit overuse of antibiotics.

The non-profit organisation Prescrire, which focuses on information about medicine, wrote in a chapter they contributed to the report that while some of the European Commission’s measures were welcome, others were concerning.

One of the many measures they rejected included the Commission’s proposal to reduce the number of days of scientific evaluation of drugs from 210 to 180, which they said was necessary time rather than an “administrative obstacle”.

While the NGO welcomed some measures such as government drug shortage prevention plans, it said the Commission should allow EU states to require pharmaceutical companies to have safety stocks of medicine and sanction those that do not respect them.

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French consumer organisation UFC-Que Choisir and the European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) said that they had hoped MEPs would shorten the length of time for “data protection” to allow generic medicines to be marketed more quickly.

Instead, MEPs approved shortening the period to 7.5 years, “which is almost the same duration as the current 8 years [yet] within the framework of the text adopted by Parliament, companies can gain additional months of protection under certain conditions to reach a total of 8.5 years,” UFC-Que Choisir said.

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Hospitals face severe drug shortages, with 99% of pharmacists reporting shortages and 309 drugs currently in short supply.

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Content: As drug shortage list grows, many hospitals face tough decisions on rationing care

More than half of hospital pharmacists are reporting a critical shortage of chemotherapy drugs and nearly all are reporting overall medicine supply gaps as prescription drug shortages near an all time high, according to a new survey.

Hospital pharmacists said drug shortages have forced 1 in 3 health systems to delay, cancel or ration care or switch to alternate drugs to continue to treat patients. And 99% are reporting some drug supply shortages, an American Society of Health-System Pharmacists survey of more than 1,000 pharmacists released Thursday found.

The organization reported shortages of 309 drugs, near the all-time high of 320 shortages in 2014. The scarcity of key drugs is prompting hospitals to find or substitute drugs and change treatment plans as needed.

“In some cases, there are no alternatives to the affected drugs, which puts patients at risk," ASHP Chief Executive Officer Paul W. Abramowitz said in a statement. "This issue requires quick action from Congress to address the underlying causes of shortages and ensure patients have the medications they need.”

Cancer drug shortages

In June, the Food and Drug Administration said it will temporarily allow overseas drug manufacturers to import some chemotherapy drugs.

The FDA allowed Qilu Pharmaceutical, a drug manufacturer in China, to import the injectable chemotherapy drug cisplatin in 50-milligram vials. Toronto pharmaceutical company Apotex Corp. will distribute the medication in the United States.

More than a dozen cancer drugs have been in shortage in recent months, including cisplatin and carboplatin, used to treat lung, breast, prostate and gynecologic cancers. The National Cancer Institute said cisplatin and similar drugs are prescribed for 10% to 20% of all cancer patients.

In June, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network released a survey of 27 academic cancer centers that found 93% reported shortages of carboplatin and 70% faced shortages of cisplatin.

When cancer hospitals face such shortages, they attempt to make sure there's enough medication for patients to finish the course of treatment, said Mike Ganio, ASHP's senior director of pharmacy practice and quality.

Cancer hospitals facing such shortages might change medications for new patients starting on chemotherapy, said Ganio, a former pharmacy manager at an academic cancer center.

"You try to keep that patient on the same regimen as much as you can, unless they're failing it for some reason, and then you would switch," Ganio said.

Steroids, hormonal drugs also in short supply

More than 1 in 5 hospital pharmacists also reported shortages for steroids, hormonal drugs and oral liquids such as lidocaine, ibuprofen and amoxicillin.

A smaller number of pharmacists said heart medications, emergency prefilled syringes and drugs used for intensive care unit patients were in short supply. Others reported shortages of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder medicines, antimicrobial drugs and injectable opioids.

In all, about two-thirds of pharmacists said the shortages were "moderately impactful," which means they are managing shortages but patients are affected.

Pharmacists are managing the shortages by offering therapeutic alternatives, buying different vial sizes or concentrations and rationing medicines.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Survey: Drug shortages are widespread, hospitals ration care

One in three health systems delay or ration care due to shortages, including over a dozen cancer drugs like cisplatin and carboplatin.

Cisplatin is prescribed for 10-20% of cancer patients, while 93% of academic cancer centers face carboplatin shortages.

The European Parliament adopted a pharmaceutical reform position, which may require EU states to hold safety stocks of medicine to mitigate shortages.

US drug shortages are largely caused by a fragmented supply chain, requiring a coordinated response and changes to the pharmaceutical business model.

Title:

Content: Meitu
The first quarter of the United States serious drug shortage 323 drugs urgent cancer patients also have to be diverted and rationed!
CHU HENG NETWORK NEWS CENTER 2024-04-16 10: 42
According to the latest data from the American Society of Health System Pharmacists (ASHP) and the Utah Center for Drug Information Services, a total of 323 drugs in the United States were in severe shortages in the first quarter of this year, surpassing the record of 320 in 2014.
Among the drugs affected are the widely used diabetes drugs Ozempic and Mounjaro, the allergy treatment drug adrenaline, the common antibiotic amoxicillin for children, chemotherapy drugs and injections commonly used in hospitals in intensive care.
ASHP CEO Paul Abramowitz said in a statement that almost all categories of drugs are facing shortages, with non-patented sterile injectable drugs, including cancer chemotherapy drugs, and emergency drugs stored in hospital emergency vans and operating areas, the shortage of such drugs is the most worrying.
According to the American Cancer Society, chemotherapy is one of the top five drugs most affected by the shortage, which threatens to have a devastating impact on patients, and some hospitals and clinics say doctors have had to divert patients to ration their medications because of a shortage of some chemotherapy drugs.
In addition, ASHP noted that the continued nationwide shortage of ADHD drugs is “a problem for clinicians and patients. ”
The shortage of popular drugs is even more acute, with Mounjaro, the diabetes drug known as the “slimming pill ”, already in dire straits.
In response, Lilly said that the “unprecedented surge in demand ” for Mounjaro and its similar drug Zepbound has led to a shortage in the market, which the company is struggling to cope with.
Lilly is ramping up investments to boost production at Mounjaro and Zepbound in the second half of 2024.
The company said it expects intermittent supply disruptions in the near term due to unprecedented demand.
How to cure the drug shortage
The last major “drug shortage ” in U.S. history occurred in 2014, and it has only been alleviated in the years since.
Since 2021, the drug shortage situation seems to be increasing, and scholars in the field of medical health and economics in the United States believe that the reason for most drug shortages in the United States is the fragmentation of the drug supply chain.
The White House this month proposed spending between $3.26 billion and $5.11 billion over the next decade to help address the nation ’ s drug shortage.
The bill requires approval and funding from the U.S. Congress.
U.S. researchers and policymakers believe that a complete solution to the “drug shortage ” may require changes to the business model of the U.S. pharmaceutical industry, including measures to increase the price of generic drugs to attract more drug manufacturers.
Policymakers recommend giving the FDA more power to access more information about drug shortages and impending shortages.
Currently, the FDA relies primarily on phone calls to manufacturers asking if they can increase their supply to understand the situation.
The American Society of Health System Pharmacists said it is working with the federal government to advise the government on measures to address the drug shortage, including that Congress should require manufacturers to be more transparent on any supply chain issues and encourage more diversity in supply chains.
According to Abramowitz, “The federal government still has a lot of work to do to fundamentally address drug shortages, and the American Society of Health System Pharmacists will continue to engage regularly with policymakers to guide them in drafting and passing new legislation to address drug shortages and continue to advocate vigorously for proven solutions on behalf of our members. ”

The FDA needs more power to access drug shortage information and manufacturers must be more transparent to mitigate medication shortages.

Drug shortages significantly impact healthcare systems, harming patients and causing pharmacy sales losses, particularly in Egypt where shortages of vital medicines have worsened since 2019.

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Content: Pharmacies owners in Alexandria: The drug commodity is strategic and the shortage affected the employment by about 20%
A number of members of the Board of Directors of the Pharmacies Owners Division at the Chamber of Commerce in Alexandria stressed that the problem of shortage of many drugs that began to appear recently led to problems and negative phenomena and reflected on the operating economies, in addition to its negative impact on the health of patients mainly.
Moataz Mahmoud
11: 48 AM, Thursday, 20 Jul 23
A number of members of the Board of Directors of the Pharmacies Owners Division at the Chamber of Commerce in Alexandria stressed that the problem of shortage of many drugs that began to appear recently led to problems and negative phenomena and reflected on the operating economies, in addition to its negative impact on the health of patients mainly.
Some added that the drug commodity has a special nature and there is no one to dispense with it, pointing out that the drug market suffers from a real problem that must be intervened to fix it, especially that there are vital medicines and some chronic diseases have become unavailable, which means there is a risk to the health of patients who use them.
Some estimated the rates of negative effects on the economies of pharmacies by about 20% as a result of the shortage of many drugs, which affects their sales, pointing out that the impact of pharmacies remains limited compared to the effects achieved on patients.
Some considered that the drug commodity represents national security and therefore the crisis of drug shortages must not continue and must be resolved quickly, in order to preserve the sector and not collapse, especially as the pharmaceutical sector proved efficient in the stage of facing the new Corona virus pandemic and stood by the Egyptian state at that critical period.
Samir Siddiq: Commodity Medicine Strategy
At the beginning, Dr. Samir Siddik, a member of the board of directors of the pharmacy owners division in the Chamber of Commerce in Alexandria, and the former chairman of the board of directors of the division said that the problem of shortage of many drugs that began to appear recently leads to disasters in the drug market and affects patients negatively mainly.
Siddiq added that there is no individual in Egypt who does not use it, even if this is at the level of the healthy for ordinary aspirin or sparkling, pointing out that this has turned into a real problem experienced by many parts of the system.
He considered that the pharmaceutical market suffers from a real problem that must be intervened to reform this important and vital market.
He explained that there are vital medicines, some of which are specific to chronic diseases, have become unavailable or available in the market, which means that the continued absence of these medicines means the slow death of patients who take them.
He pointed out that the nature of the drug commodity is national security and it is necessary to intervene to resolve it, explaining that the Egyptian Drug Authority should have a role in this matter besides its work as a lecturer for pharmacists and balance errors more than its keenness on the availability of drugs in the markets.
He considered a member of the Board of Directors of the Pharmacies Owners Division in the Chamber of Commerce in Alexandria, and the former Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Division that the crisis of shortage of medicines continues in the markets since 2019, but it has worsened recently and significantly for many varieties.
Samir Siddiq considered that the shortage of medicines affects the sales of pharmacies and their operating economies, pointing out that the lack of availability of these medicines leads to a negative impact on pharmacies by an estimated 20%.
The Egyptian pharmaceutical markets are witnessing a clear shortage in many pharmaceutical items during the recent times, which has been reflected significantly on many dealers in the drug circulation system, from patients, hospitals, production companies and distribution companies to pharmacies, which is the main point and the final link between the producer and the final consumer of the drug.
In turn, Dr. Mohamed Hamed, a member of the Board of Directors of the Pharmacies Owners Division at the Alexandria Chamber of Commerce, explained that the problem of shortage in some medicines suffered by the markets varies from one category to another and from one company to another.
Hamed stressed that the drug commodity represents national security and therefore the crisis of drug shortages must not continue and must be resolved, pointing out that the pharmaceutical sector bore the burden of confronting the new Corona virus and stood by the Egyptian state at that critical period.
He added that pharmacies were suffering with patients during the pandemic, while private hospitals were demanding large amounts for patients per day, and pharmacists made efforts to solve the crisis and alleviate its impact, so medicine should not be increased without compensation.
He considered that some pharmacy chains are one of the reasons for the deterioration of the profession and some of them are a failure, which means that the community and the sector can not rely on large pharmacies alone, but individual and small pharmacies bear the burden of covering the sector as the most widespread and provide technical advice, pointing out that some chains offer discounts to citizens that they got bank loans enabled them.
A member of the Board of Directors of the Pharmacies Owners Division at Alexandria Chamber of Commerce pointed out that the continuation of the shortage of medicines means the aggravation of the problem on patients and for pharmacies, they will not be affected by the shortcomings as much as the effects on patients and therefore the public is the most affected.
He considered that the lack of impact on pharmacies is due to the fact that the shortcomings do not reach to stop companies from producing fully, but some companies manufacture many products and stop producing some of those types as a result of not making profits from them, in contrast, there are other companies may be manufacturing the same product under another brand name and at a different price and make profits and continue to produce it.
A member of the Board of Directors of the Pharmacies Owners Division at Alexandria Chamber of Commerce explained that in such cases the pharmacist dispenses the medicines available to patients and sometimes the doctor has to prescribe them to patients regardless of their prices.

Taiwan is experiencing a shortage of 131 medicines, including amoxicillin and acetaminophen, due to low drug prices.

Title:

Content: The Kuomintang group calls on Chen Chien-jen to take over the government's national security crisis
REPORTER WENG Tzu-kun / Taipei Report
The shortage of drugs in the country continues to burn, the Kuomintang Legislative Yuan group today (1) a press conference called on the Tsai government, do not just want to vote all day, more concerned about the people's health rights, if the Minister of Health and Welfare Xue Ruiyuan, the Food and Drug Administration Director Wu Xiumei do not do well, it will be cut off.
The KMT further demanded that the "Drug Deficiency Monitoring Center" be raised to the level of the Executive Yuan, and called on Premier Chen Jianren to take over the management and treat it as a national security level issue.
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The Kuomintang group today opened a "shortage of drugs! shortage of drugs! When?" press conference, the general convenor Zeng Mingzong said that the shortage of drugs is a structural problem, health insurance to slash the price of drugs, so that the shortage of drugs crisis expanded, local pharmaceutical companies are more reluctant to produce low-cost drugs.
And some people complained, ran 10 drug bureaus did not receive drugs, beat the table to scolding, so that the community pharmacist pressure is great.
Zeng Mingzong pointed out that, for example, muscle relaxants reported a shortage of drugs on March 8, 2021, compound antibiotics, anti-fever pain tablets reported a shortage of drugs on June 6, 2022, blood pressure drugs reported a shortage of drugs on August 25, 2022, blood lipid-lowering drugs reported a shortage of drugs on August 26, 2022. In addition to the election, Tsai's government also cares about the health of the nation's people.
Zeng Mingzong said that the Kuomintang group humbly asked the Tsai government, the current lack of eggs, water, and medicine in the country, the people are asking the government what is wrong? Impairment! Failure! Please the government to come up with a specific plan to solve the problem of shortage of drugs, and ensure the basic health rights of 23 million people.
Hsieh Ying-yi, secretary-general, says that recent shortages of amoxicillin, acetaminophen, magnesium oxide, and ibuprofen in primary pharmacies and clinics have revealed that there are 131 medicines out of stock in Taiwan.
She stressed that in order to solve the problem of drug shortage, the community pharmacy has also set up a "mutual aid association" to find drugs in the way of drug exchange.
He bluntly said that this is a serious national security problem, will it make the burden of health care more heavy?
For a long time, the total amount of health insurance system has been driving down drug prices, but international pharmaceutical companies are facing a global shortage of goods, and will not give priority to imports to Taiwan.
When the National Health Insurance Administration wants to solve the unreasonable drug price difference, does it also solve the problem of drug prices that do not meet the cost?
Xie Yifeng also pointed out that on February 11, Xue Ruiyuan urgently convened a meeting on shortage of drugs, and resolved to persuade drug manufacturers to increase production capacity. If it is not possible to increase production capacity, then strengthen the allocation of hospitals and clinics to pharmacies to solve the problem of shortage of drugs.
How does the Ministry of Health and Welfare assist domestic pharmaceutical companies in obtaining raw materials and mass-producing pharmaceutical products?
Not at all.
Shouldn ’ t the Ministry of Health and Welfare convene meetings across ministries, industries, and pharmaceuticals to coordinate and solve problems?
Hsieh Yi-hung lambasted that after the meeting of the Ministry of Health and Welfare, nothing had been done, and such a meeting would not be held.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare will increase the burden of health insurance to 120 million yuan on April 1, which is expected to affect 1.17 million people.
Please ask Chen Chien-jen and the Ministry of Health and Welfare, in the special budget after the epidemic, to allocate 20 billion yuan for health insurance, why do you need to increase part of the burden?
The Ministry of Health and Welfare should first solve the problem of lack of medicines, and do not want to spend money from the pockets of the people.
On March 29, 2019, Wu Xiumei, who is responsible for managing the national drug administration department, held a meeting on “Drug Shortage ”. The results of the expert meeting on the evaluation of the operation and follow-up mechanism of the meeting were only based on the meeting and the meeting was postponed, and the decisions made after the meeting were not implemented.
"Taiwan's lack of medicine is a problem of management." Lai Shibao pointed out that the Ministry of Health and Welfare has constantly justified itself with problems such as rising raw materials and the Russian-Ukrainian war, but the whole world is affected, and Taiwan alone has a shortage of medicine.
In 1999, the US FDA established a “Drug Deficiency Monitoring Center ”, which stipulates that any drug that is less than 6 months in stock must be monitored and taken countermeasures.
Lai Shih-pao points out that the pharmaceutical and medical sectors in Taiwan have long called on the government to do the same.
Lai Shih-pao also suggested that Chen Chien-jen, the National Health Insurance Administration (NHIA) plans to slash the health insurance drug budget by NT $8.1 billion. Please ask the so-called warm and tenacious cabinet to start caring for humanity and solve the problem of shortage of drugs as soon as possible.
In 2016, Tsai Ying-ying told pharmacists at the All-Union Congress of Pharmacists that it was necessary to make medicines available to the people and replace them with social medicines in 2018. The result was still a shortage of drugs.
Yang Qiong said that magnesium oxide mainly treats gastric and esophageal reflux and constipation, is a common chronic prescription drug. Patients need to use drugs every day. Does the government know? In addition, the first-line commonly used antibiotics Ammonicillin and acetaminophen painkillers are lacking, which increases the risk of physical collapse of first-line medical care.
The government does not know what the problem is, and even the drugs have to go back to the original "drug-for-drugs" era, the "drug-for-drugs monitoring center" must be raised to the level of the Executive Yuan, immediately inventory 131 drug categories, immediately replenish, strengthen the monitoring mechanism, so that the people really have drugs available.
Dr. Shen Caiying, spokesman of the Taiwan Pharmaceutical Marketing and Management Association, said with emotion that Tsai Ing-wen had said that the society has drugs available, and the people will use drugs, which of course is also the responsibility of pharmacists.
During the epidemic, the Ministry of Health and Welfare relied heavily on community pharmacies to issue masks and rapid screening to take on the frontline public health mission, but the Ministry of Health and Welfare seemed indifferent to the serious problem of drug shortage.
Shen Caiying questioned the government, according to Article 15 of the "National Health Insurance Drug Price Adjustment Operation Measures", the directive drug is not allowed to have a floor price, but the Director of Health Insurance Shi Chongliang publicly stated that the directive drug should be set a floor price to solve the problem of drug shortage.
Shen Caiying said that for every US dollar used in the United States on the instructions, it can save 6 to 7 US dollars for health insurance, which can save 10.2 billion US dollars a year.
Shen Caiying suggested that the government, to solve the problem of shortage of drugs, please administer according to law, instruct that drugs should not be paid, cancel the daily drug charge, and pay.
The drug shortage center must combine relevant professional groups, patient groups, and pharmaceutical industry to jointly discuss the problem of drug shortage.
In addition, one of the four vice presidents of the Executive Yuan ’ s Commission for Sustainable Development is Minister Weifu. I wonder if the Minister of Weifu has told the Executive Yuan that there is a serious shortage of drugs?
Or do you want the community pharmacy to suffer silently?
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