# Global Medication Shortages: Impact on Patients and Healthcare Responses (2021-2024)

## Executive Summary

Medication shortages have emerged as a critical global health challenge affecting both developed and developing nations between 2021 and 2024.

This report examines specific cases where supply chain disruptions, demand spikes, and manufacturing delays have directly impacted patient care, along with the responses from healthcare authorities.

## Key Medication Shortages and Patient Impacts

### 1.

Antibiotic Shortages (Amoxicillin)
**Affected Regions:** Global, particularly EU countries and United States
**Time Period:** 2022-2023

During the respiratory infection season, shortages of amoxicillin became critical in multiple countries.

This antibiotic is essential for treating common childhood infections like ear infections and bronchitis.

The shortage occurred at a particularly vulnerable time when hospitals were experiencing high volumes of respiratory infections.

**Patient Impact:** Children and adults suffering

# Global Medication Shortages: Impact on Patients and Healthcare Responses (2021-2024)

## Executive Summary

Medication shortages have emerged as a critical global health challenge affecting both developed and developing nations between 2021 and 2024.

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Content: There is not enough medicine in the EU
19 January 2023, 05: 20
ASTANA.
KAZINFORM - The European Union is suffering from a shortage of medicines.
Deficiency of antibiotics, such as amoxicillin, drugs against colds, flu and other respiratory infections, as well as some drugs for children, reports MIA "Kazinform" with reference to euronews.com.
In most countries, the situation is considered critical, but since such goods from pharmacies do not disappear at all, citizens are not advised to make stocks.
Doctors note a weakening in the population of natural immunity due to protection against coronavirus such as social distancing.
The main reasons for the sharp increase in demand, which have been identified, is the high prevalence of respiratory diseases with a lack of production capacity.
As pharmaceutical issues are being addressed at the national level, Governments are already taking steps to overcome the shortage
These measures include the sale of generics and the replacement of requested medicines with similar ones.
In some countries, some formulations have been changed, for example, drugs are offered in the form of syrups instead of tablets, so that children are more willing to take them.
"Pediatric drugs are generally now less available in the form of conventional tablets," said Steffen Tierstrup, chief medical officer of the European Medicines Agency. "Therefore, where children are more ill, the need for pediatric drugs is higher than for adult drugs."
A recent study showed that the shortage of drugs in Spain increased by 38% over the year.
The decline in their production was affected by inflation, high energy prices, shortages of raw materials and the effects of the pandemic.
“We need diversification, ” said Ilaria Passarani, head of the EU Pharmaceutical Group.“ Of course, it would be useful to return to Europe the production of some critical materials, such as active ingredients.
But we can't return all the production of all the materials we use for drugs.
This entails problems such as the increase in pharmacy prices associated with the implementation of environmental laws, labor laws, which are not necessarily enforced in other regions. ”
In March, the European Commission will present a revised version of the EU pharmaceutical legislation, which will include stricter supply obligations, earlier notification of shortages and seizures of medicines, and better informing the public about available stocks.
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Content: Drastic cutbacks in the supply of prescription opioids, tougher monitoring of where those pills go and other efforts to curb abuse have had an unintended consequence, Long Island doctors and pharmacists say: People who have a legitimate need for the medicine to relieve severe pain now often have a hard time finding it.

Patients say the shortage means they must endure more pain after they run out of medication. Physicians' staffs sometimes have to call pharmacy after pharmacy to fill patients' prescriptions.

“I have a dozen messages every day from people saying their pharmacy doesn’t have” opioids, said Dr. Edward Rubin, a pain management specialist with offices in Garden City and Lake Success, who said he is careful to prescribe opioids only to patients without good alternatives, particularly those recovering from major surgery.

The opioid medicine shortage that doctors and pharmacists say has emerged over the past few years comes after decades during which pain pills like OxyContin flooded the market and addicted countless Americans. Prescription-drug overdose deaths spiked in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

WHAT TO KNOW

  • Doctors and pharmacists said efforts to reduce the supply of legal opioids to prevent diversion and abuse have gone too far and made it difficult for those with legitimate pain needs to access their medicine.
  • The Drug Enforcement Administration has drastically reduced its annual caps on opioid manufacturing, leading to shortages at pharmacies, which receive a limited number of opioids each month, doctors and pharmacists say.
  • Doctors say opioids were overprescribed in the past, and they are cautious in deciding whether to authorize them for patients. But they said opioids remain the best alternative for some people with severe pain.

Although fentanyl, much of it illegally manufactured, now kills a far greater percentage of people, the number of prescription-drug overdose fatalities in 2021 — 16,706 — is only slightly below the 2017 peak and five times more than in 1999, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data. On Long Island in 2022, more than 700 people died of overdoses of legal and illegal opioids, most of them from fentanyl, Nassau and Suffolk officials said this week.

Rubin and other doctors and pharmacists put principal blame for the opioid shortage on the Drug Enforcement Administration’s declining cap on the amount of opioids pharmaceutical manufacturers can produce each year. For example, the DEA slashed the quota for the most widely produced opioid, oxycodone, which includes the brand names OxyContin and Percocet, from 164 million grams in 2013 to about 54 million in 2023.

“Continuing to throttle the legitimate supply is only hurting legitimate patients at the moment,” Rubin said.

Patients who can’t find their prescribed medicine "are scrambling and switching medications, and we’re adding more risk … [because] I don't know how they're going to respond to a totally different medication," he said.

Tom D’Angelo, owner of pharmacies in Franklin Square, Garden City and Point Lookout and former president of the Pharmacists Society of the State of New York, said the DEA should increase quotas so patients with legitimate pain needs can obtain relief.

He fears that some people in severe pain may resort to buying pills on the street, where something sold as oxycodone may actually be a potentially fatal dose of fentanyl.

“If you’re in enough pain, you’ll try anything,” he said.

Rationing pain-relief pills

John Douglas, 66, of Lake Grove, has been taking opioid medications for several years, first for neck pain, and now also for joint pain from prostate cancer drugs.

“I’m in pain constantly,” he said.

He’s tried several alternatives to opioids and, although the hydrocodone he takes “doesn’t give me 100% relief,” it reduces pain and allows him to work as a physical therapist assistant.

Yet, multiple times, he’s faced delays or uncertainty in obtaining medication, and he’s had to cut pills in half to ration them, which increases his pain.

“I’m sick and tired of every time you go to the drugstore, you don’t know if your medicine is going to be there or not,” he said. “It’s just not right.”

People with legitimate pain are being “penalized” for those who abuse opioids, he said.

Patients nationwide have struggled to obtain their opioid medications. Hundreds of chronic pain patients, medical professionals and others submitted remarks to the DEA last year about the agency's 2023 quotas, some expressing concern that decreases “have resulted in a shortage of opioid medications, interfered with the treatment of patients, and impacted the quality of life for patients possibly leading to suicide,” according to a DEA summary of comments released in December.

Critics, in comments submitted to the DEA and in statements from pharmaceutical executives and others, said DEA quotas on ingredients for attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder medications also are among the reasons for a nationwide shortage of those drugs.

But faced with an ongoing opioid crisis, the DEA has been under pressure to reduce quotas. A 2020 letter to the DEA from Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) said despite huge previous cuts in quotas, they were still “excessively high.” Spokespeople for Durbin and Kennedy did not respond to requests for comment.

The DEA in the December report said its quotas are set “in a manner to provide for all legitimate medical purposes.” It also said the limits "help prevent the misuse and diversion of pharmaceutical controlled substances,” and overdoses. A DEA spokeswoman declined to comment further.

The DEA acknowledged in the report that fewer than 1% of five common opioid medications were diverted for illicit uses. Numerous comments also pointed out that despite the drop in quotas, overdose deaths were up — especially from fentanyl and pain pills manufactured illegally outside the quotas.

Mary Silberstein, senior director of strategic alliances and special projects for Hicksville-based CN Guidance and Counseling Services, said restrictions on opioid supply and distribution were “much needed” and have saved lives.

“When you had so many people giving out the prescriptions in such large quantities, you had to have restrictions,” she said.

Silberstein said even though most people with opioid problems currently coming to CN Guidance are misusing fentanyl, a significant number are addicted to prescription opioids.

Opioid prescription rates drop on Long Island

The massive decrease in opioid quotas came after dramatic increases in the 1990s and 2000s. The quota for oxycodone, for example, rose from 3.5 million in 1993, before FDA approval of one of the most widely abused opioids, OxyContin, to its peak of 164 million in 2013. Other opioids had less extreme increases or were taken off the market.

Although the number of opioid prescriptions began falling after 2010, there still were about three times as many opioids prescribed in 2015 as in 1999, when calculated by “morphine milligram equivalents,” to account for differences in drug type and strength, according to a 2017 article in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly.

On Long Island, the number of opioid prescriptions per 100 people fell by more than half in Suffolk between 2012 and 2020, from 66.4 to 29.9, while Nassau’s rate decreased from 49.2 to 41.3, below the national rate of 43.3, according to the CDC. The rate includes people with multiple prescriptions in a year.

Experts say rates are declining in part because doctors turn to opioids more sparingly and there are more controls to flag physicians who prescribe unusually large amounts of opioids. In the past, people abusing opioids “would doctor-shop,” said Dr. Paul Pipia, president of the Medical Society of the State of New York and deputy medical director of Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow. “There was no way to know who went where.”

There now is an electronic registry of patients’ controlled-substance histories that the state requires medical professionals to review before writing prescriptions. A law capping initial opioid prescriptions for acute pain at seven days, with refills only after further evaluation, limits overprescribing, Pipia said.

Pharmacists say ceilings on how many opioids they dispense each month mean that even though the number of opioid prescriptions is declining, they can't always fill them.

As part of a $21 billion settlement for their alleged role in the opioid crisis, the nation’s three largest pharmaceutical distributors agreed to increase their scrutiny of opioids and limit the quantity they send each pharmacy.

D’Angelo said if he runs out of his monthly opioid allotment, he has to make hard decisions on who gets their medications.

Mukash Patel, owner of pharmacies in Dix Hills and Patchogue, said he sometimes can’t get certain opioids “for days on end.”

“The patient should not have to run around calling 30 different places to see if the drug is in stock,” he said.

Often, pharmacies won’t tell patients if they have a medicine, so Rubin said his staff must make the calls.

“We don't have the bandwidth to be calling a dozen pharmacies for everybody who can’t get their medication,” he said.

Lauren Esposito, spokesperson for one of the distributors in the opioid settlement, Pennsylvania-based Amerisource Bergen, said in a statement that distributors “have been asked to walk a legal and ethical tightrope by both maintaining access to products while simultaneously limiting potential diversion.”

She called for better federal guidance “to support patient access.”

State opioid tax

D’Angelo said a state excise tax on most opioids, approved by the New York Legislature in 2019 as part of the state budget, aggravates the problem.

Wisconsin-based Independent Pharmacy Cooperative stopped selling opioids covered by the excise tax before it went into effect because “we thought that continuing to sell would likely mean that it would have been unprofitable,” said the company’s general counsel, Paul Karch. Last year, the company stopped selling all opioids nationwide because of high monitoring costs, he said.

Assemb. Linda Rosenthal (D-Manhattan), who headed the Assembly’s alcoholism and drug abuse committee when the tax was enacted, opposes the way the tax is structured because it can lead to higher prices for consumers, as well as lower supply. She called on the Department of Health to study the problem and find solutions.

Dr. Thomas Jan, a Massapequa pain management and addiction physician, said pain patients shouldn't have such difficulty obtaining prescribed medications. But, he said, in the past, many well-intentioned doctors were too quick to prescribe opioids, and they often prescribed too much, putting patients at increased risk of addiction. Jan said around 2010, his then-16-year-old son was prescribed 90 Vicodin pills after having a wisdom tooth pulled.

Dr. Yili Huang, a regional manager for pain management services for Northwell Health, said additional controls have caused doctors to think more carefully about alternatives to opioids. But opioids still have an important role, especially in relieving pain after surgery and for cancer, palliative and end-of-life care, he said.

Yet some doctors are hesitant to prescribe opioids, for fear of being “stigmatized as a doctor that prescribes a lot of opioids,” Huang said.

Rubin said he is conscious of the risk of developing dependence or addiction to opioids, so about nine in 10 of his new patients “probably will never see an opioid."

“We have more options than we ever had to treat patients with injections and those types of therapies,” he said.

Rubin most often writes opioid prescriptions for patients in severe pain after major surgery. For chronic pain patients who previously weren't prescribed opioids, “we’re really trying to save it as a last resort," he said.

The CDC’s 2022 guidance for opioid prescribing says there is insufficient evidence to determine the long-term benefits of opioid therapy for chronic pain. But, the CDC said, doctors should carefully weigh the risks and benefits of discontinuing opioids for those already prescribed them.

Rubin is reluctant to take chronic pain patients off opioids if the medication has been helping them long-term.

“There are lawyers and accountants and people like that who couldn't sit in a chair all day and work at their desk without their pain medicine,” he said. “Society has to separate those people who are using medication judiciously and not lump them in with people who are trying to take high doses in an abuse-type situation to get high.”

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Content: |

FTC, US Health Dept Launch Probe Over Chemo Drug Shortages

The investigation is targeting so-called middlemen that broker deals between hospitals and pharmaceutical companies.

Sign up for smart news, insights, and analysis on the biggest financial stories of the day.

Each year, roughly 2 million Americans are diagnosed with cancer, and for some, getting the proper treatment has become a very serious waiting game.

This week, the Federal Trade Commission and the US Department of Health jointly launched a probe seeking information on how middlemen — group purchasing organizations (GPOs) and drug wholesalers — may be contributing to a lack of chemotherapies and other generic drugs.

The Cost of Cheap Drugs

While various cancer treatments have gone in and out of short supply for years, the problem became particularly acute in 2023. In May, a survey from the National Comprehensive Cancer Network found that 93% of treatment centers reported they were short on carboplatin and 70% reported they were short on cisplatin. Those two drugs are used together and are prescribed to 10% to 20% of cancer patients. Those shortage rates dropped in the fall, but still sat at uncomfortably high levels, with many patients experiencing longer wait times between chemo sessions.

Access to raw materials for making drugs and an increase in patients play a part in the shortages, but the FTC and the Health Department suspect the middlemen buying and selling the medications might be at the heart of the issue:

  • Hospital transactions for medications are controlled almost entirely by three GPOs — Vizient, Premier, and HealthTrust — that purchase drugs on behalf of health centers, and three wholesalers — AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health and McKesson — that supply 90% of the pharmaceuticals, The Wall Street Journal reported.
  • Doctors, drugmakers, and patient advocate groups have argued that because the three GPOs represent so many hospitals, they’re able to win extremely low prices from wholesalers. But the prices may be so low that some drugmakers slash production or stop making the drugs entirely if they feel they can no longer turn a profit.

“For years Americans have faced acute shortages of critical drugs, from chemotherapy to antibiotics, endangering patients,” said FTC Chair Lina Khan. “Our inquiry requests information on the factors driving these shortages and scrutinizes the practices of opaque drug middlemen.”

A Growing Concern: A short supply of cancer treatments isn’t a great development, especially with new evidence that the disease is on the rise among younger generations. Most cancer patients are 65 and older, but one study published in JAMA last summer found cancer rates among people 50 and younger are going up, mostly driven by women and people in their 30s.

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Content: Newswise — OAK BROOK, Ill. (May 19, 2022) – Recent disruptions in a pharmaceutical supply chain have impacted the global availability of GE Healthcare Omnipaque™ iohexol iodinated contrast media (ICM) for radiologic examinations. A new Special Report published in the journal Radiology provides consensus recommendations for dealing with the shortage of ICM in the near term and discusses long-term issues and potential solutions to supply chain problems.

“We are facing issues similar to those we faced in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, caused by a limited supply of an important pharmaceutical, critical to our ability to care for our patients,” said Thomas M. Grist, M.D., chair of the Department of Radiology at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health in Madison and lead author of the Radiology Special Report. “One important difference, however, is that our hospitals and health systems are more adept at establishing incident command centers to implement rapid responses to the challenges we face and communicating those changes to our patients and referring physicians.”

Iohexol is a common agent used in a multitude of CT and X-ray exams. The iohexol shortage has created a national challenge to radiology’s collective ability to provide health care to patients needing these exams and will have short- and potentially long-term impact on quality medical care.

Although four companies supply ICM to the U.S., other manufacturers are unable to rapidly scale up ICM production to meet the demand created by the reduction in iohexol.

The shortage traces its origins to the recent COVID-19-related shutdown of a manufacturing facility in Shanghai, China. In an April 19 letter to consumers, GE Healthcare announced it would be limiting orders of iohexol. The facility has since reopened with production output currently at 50% and expected to increase. GE Healthcare has also expanded production capacity at its manufacturing site in Cork, Ireland.

“It is too easy for us to take for granted the readily available supply of something that is so important to our patients and our radiologic practices until it’s gone,” Dr. Grist said. “We need to commit to changing the supply chain so that a single event in a faraway country does not put us in this predicament again. We owe it to our patients who trust us with their lives and well-being every day of the year.”

The shortage has already had an effect on patient care. Across the U.S., hospitals dependent on iohexol are postponing treatment-monitoring imaging for cancer patients, as they attempt to preserve the contrast material for the most urgent cases.

The Special Report offers strategies for mitigating the impact of the shortage. Short-term strategies include establishing an incident command center to direct and monitor ICM usage, delaying elective contrast-enhanced CT exams, converting exams to non-contrast when possible, reducing contrast dose, and substituting other types of exams, such as MRI, ultrasound or non-contrast PET-CT.

Strategies for the coming months include contrast repackaging, multi-use, and multi-access tactics, negotiation with payers on billing and reimbursement, and consistent communication with ordering providers to ensure compliance.

Long-term strategies include advocating for legislation to facilitate contrast manufacturing plants in the U.S., improving institutional inventory of contrast supplies, and supporting the vendors to expand manufacturing.

“RSNA and its journals are committed to providing critical guidance to help our members navigate challenging times,” said RSNA President, Bruce G. Haffty, M.D. “This Radiology Special Report provides helpful strategies for managing the iodinated contrast shortage and offers practical recommendations for mitigating the impact of future shortages of this type on the radiology community and our patients.”

The authors hope that the radiology and hospital communities will take this lesson as a wake-up call to adapt the radiology supply chain to prevent similar emergencies in the future.

“We need to endeavor to ensure that companies with significant market share have diverse production locations and capacity,” Dr. Grist said. “We should also look at the ancillary components for ICM administration and make certain we have adequate supplies in stock. Any and all supplies we use may be the next subject of shortages over the next few months or years.”

See also: Iodinated Contrast Shortage Challenges Radiologists.

###

Short-, Mid-, and Long-Term Strategies to Manage the Shortage of Iohexol.” Collaborating with Dr. Grist were Cheri L. Canon, M.D., Elliot K. Fishman, M.D., Maureen P. Kohi, M.D., and Mahmud Mossa-Basha, M.D.

Radiology is edited by David A. Bluemke, M.D., Ph.D., University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, Wisconsin, and owned and published by the Radiological Society of North America, Inc. (RSNA) (https://pubs.rsna.org/journal/radiology)

RSNA is an association of radiologists, radiation oncologists, medical physicists and related scientists promoting excellence in patient care and health care delivery through education, research and technologic innovation. The Society is based in Oak Brook, Illinois. (RSNA.org)

For patient-friendly information on contrast materials, visit RadiologyInfo.org.

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Content: Ireland has been suffering a paracetamol shortage as cases of Covid-19 and the winter flu in the country soared over the festive and new year period.

The revelation was made by Health Minister Stephen Donnelly after his department received notification of a supply issue from the Health Products Regulatory Authority.

It is understood the shortage impacted some prescription paracetamol products.

Read More:Irish people complain of ‘worst ever’ winter bug sweeping country that feels like Covid but isn’t

Two suppliers affected have stated that resupply will be sometime in January 2023.

However, there are other prescription paracetamol suppliers with some stock available on the shelves.

Paracetamol is one of the medicines used most often in Ireland and especially for the flu, aches and pain.

But Mr Donnelly pointed out that there are multiple forms of the drug with different strengths and brands available from various sources.

He said: "In the event that there are some supply issues for individual medicines, alternative options such as alternative strengths and brands, generic medicines will usually be available to ensure continuity of treatment.

"In some cases where the medicine initially prescribed for the patient is unavailable, patients may be switched to a suitable therapeutic alternative following appropriate consultation with a healthcare professional."

The Health Minister said medicine shortages have been increasingly prevalent worldwide over the past decade. The causes of such shortages are multifactorial including shortage of raw materials, manufacturing difficulties and industry consolidations.

He stated: "Medicine shortages can originate at any point in the supply chain. They can involve and impact many stakeholders in different ways as the supply models and clinical use of therapies can vary across national health systems.

"Management of medicines shortages necessitates a multi-faceted, multi stakeholder response to ensure patient safety , continuity of care and protection of public health.

"Patients or their carers who have any concerns in relation to temporary alternative products provided because of medical shortages are advised to speak with their pharmacist or other healthcare [professionals] involved in their care."

Mr Donnelly was responding to a number of written Dail questions on the shortage of medicines.

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Content: How natural language processing can help relieve the healthcare worker shortage

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum.

Author: Tashfeen Suleman, CEO, CloudMedx

  • The WHO predicts a shortage of 18 million health workers by 2030.
  • A new survey shows the “biggest pain points” affecting these workers: increasing use of tech can add even more layers of documentation.
  • Healthcare workers want to spend more time caring directly for patients, and less on paperwork. Natural language processing (NLP) is a game changer. It can take over a lot of this work, freeing healthcare personnel to spend more time on direct care.

Across the world, fears are rising about a lack of nurses, doctors, and healthcare technicians in the coming years. The World Health Organization predicts a shortage of 18 million health workers by 2030.

There was already a shortage before the COVID-19 pandemic, but the last few years have exacerbated the problem. Experiencing burnout, exhaustion and mistreatment, many in the sector, especially nurses, have quit their jobs. But there are also other reasons for the shortage as well. For example, in the United States, many doctors are reaching retirement age just as the population of elderly people is expanding – meaning more people will need healthcare from fewer providers.

In addition to attracting young people to careers in medicine, other solutions are needed. One of these is to put new, emerging technologies to good use. But this is a very difficult challenge in healthcare. Unfortunately, the sector has a history of bringing in technologies that are meant to help but end up making things more complicated.

Tech as relief and burden

A new global survey of healthcare workers shows how concerned they are about this. A large majority (70%) say they believe digital health technology will enable positive transformation. But virtually the same number (69%) say these technologies will present a “challenging burden.”

I’ve seen this problem in action for years. The most prominent example involves electronic health records (EHRs). These were meant to improve care and make things much more efficient. And while they have brought benefits, they have also increased the amount of time healthcare staff have to spend dealing with documentation.

One study found that time spent on direct patient care dropped by more than 8 percent at one center. Another found that nurses perceive a high workload due to all the documentation. In a survey published in March, U.S. physicians were polled about the “documentation burden” presented by EHRs. Majorities said they’re spending too much time on documentation, and that it’s reducing the time they have for patient care. And one-third said they’re spending two hours or more completing documentation outside of work hours each day.

It shouldn’t be this way. Technologies can be designed to handle more administrative tasks so that healthcare workers spend more time in direct patient care. The more we relieve the documentation burden, the more patients can get the attention they need.

The potential of NLP

Natural language processing is a technology focused on helping machines process information as humans do. Several companies have been working to apply this to the world of medicine.

When doctors and nurses need relevant information from a patient’s healthcare records, they should not have to go digging through long lists of information collected over the years. Instead, technology should be able to read through all the text and automatically pull up relevant information for a patient’s treatment. One study published in 2020 found that specifically designed algorithms could do so with 96% accuracy.

Similarly, healthcare providers should be able to speak into their phones or other devices and have the information they provide automatically entered into healthcare records through NLP. When a patient comes into an emergency department complaining of certain symptoms, NLP can help pull up relevant information from the patient’s records – for example, a family history that could show the patient has an elevated risk for a heart attack. So doctors and nurses would see that information automatically pop up when they open the patient’s file.

Of course, there is always a possibility of machine errors, just as there are possibilities of human errors. It’s important to have healthcare personnel look at the information and doublecheck it. But there’s no need for them to spend extra time finding the information in the first place – just as they should not have to scroll through long forms with lots of text fields in order to input information. Technology should do all that for them.

There are also other ways to use NLP. For example, this technology has been built into AskSophie, a tool in which people can describe symptoms they’re having in order to learn about patients with similar ailments and what’s causing them.

Serving the needs of healthcare workers through technology

NLP is just one tool that can help relieve burdens on doctors and nurses and strengthen global healthcare for the future. Artificial intelligence can help deliver a more holistic approach to health by showing government and healthcare leaders the social determinants of health that must be addressed in different areas. Algorithms can help predict patient flow so hospitals have a better sense of how much staff they’ll need at any moment. And companies are developing new ways to monitor patients in need from afar. The possibilities are endless.

The key is to incorporate the needs of healthcare workers in the development of new technologies. The more people are freed to spend time caring for patients and avoiding burdens of documentation, the more people will join and stay in the healthcare field. This will make the global health outlook only stronger.

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Content: PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Concern is mounting after shortages of Adderall, a prescription medication used by both children and adults with ADHD, have gotten increasingly sparse since the quantities dropped several months ago.

The FDA says the shortage will resolve – but not until sometime in April.

Demand has skyrocketed, and while there are several alternative prescription medications, many of them are also in short supply.

Drug manufacturers say they can’t just make more of the medication because the FDA and the Drug Enforcement Administration limit the active ingredients, amphetamines, which can be abused and cause addiction. Even patients are limited in how much they can get at a time.

OHSU Psychiatrist Dr. James Hancey, who prescribes the medication, said finding the medicine is challenging because patients have to contact their doctor’s office to receive a prescription.

“It’s not one you can just walk around with to shop around for who might have the medication,” Hancey said.

There are some over-the-counter medications that some doctors are recommending as a way to get by, but Dr. Hansey said they are often not strong enough.

The shortage has been especially tough on kids who are prescribed ADHD medication to help them concentrate in school. Parents want to help their children, but are really frustrated.

There’s also concern that teenagers and adults could instead seek what could be deadly counterfeit drugs.

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Content: The epidemic disrupted the supply chain, coupled with the shortage of raw materials caused by the war between Ukraine and Russia, caused the "biggest shortage of drugs in 30 years" in Taiwan at the beginning of last year. With the coming of the Chinese New Year, patients are worried about hoarding goods, and I am afraid that the shortage of drugs will become more serious.
A domestic pharmaceutical company recently received a call from a patient, the original patient has a heart disease, has been taking self-funded drugs, but recently faced the problem of lack of drugs, the doctor can not prescribe the same drugs, so the patient urgently asked the pharmaceutical company directly.
The drug factory staff, who did not want to be named, revealed that "it is not only this patient, but these patients even set up groups to find out where they can buy drugs, forcing them to call us after they have no way out."
Wang Ming-yuan, deputy spokesman of the All Federation of Pharmacists Association, said: "Last year, the shortage of drugs was the most serious situation since the outbreak of the epidemic, resulting in lack of labor and logistics. Now, with the release of the epidemic, the shortage of drugs has slowed down slightly.
For example, many patients with allergic rhinitis have been short of medicine for four months, Wang says, "Because it contains ephedrine, which is a controlled drug, the FDA only puts two batches of raw materials a year, so it is easy to run out of medicine.
Another reason for the shortage of drugs is the price of health insurance drugs. Due to the price cut, about 36% of the market share of "tears point eye" withdrew from the health insurance market in November last year. The drug used in the past in the health insurance annual consumption of more than 2.3 million bottles, which is equivalent to 190,000 bottles per month. And...
Shen Tsai-ying, a pharmacist, criticized officials for only treating head pain and foot pain. She said that the price of "love tears" health insurance is more expensive, health insurance has not saved money at all, and now even the domestically produced "Wufu" and other artificial tears brands are all out of stock.
Shen Caiying predicts that this wave of artificial tears shortage will continue until at least the Spring Festival.
Since the implementation of the "Drug Expenses Target System" (DET) in 102 years, the National Health Insurance Administration has set the target value of annual drug expenditure to maintain a stable and reasonable range of drug expenses. Under the total payment system, effective control of drug expenditure. Last year, the total drug price was reduced by 8.18 billion yuan, and the price of 5,500 drugs was reduced.
"The price of water and electricity is rising, but the price of health insurance has been cut!"
Shen Caiying pointed out that the price of drugs is constantly being cut, and pharmaceutical companies have no choice but to withdraw from the health insurance market, which has led to a more serious shortage of drugs.
In recent years, the Red Sea has been involved in the conflict between Israel and Hamas, and it has been attacked by Yemeni youth movement organizations, endangering the traffic of commercial ships. Large shipping companies have announced that they will stop sailing in the Red Sea and switch to the Cape of Good Hope in southern Africa, resulting in soaring freight costs. 180% increase.
Wang Ming-yuan laments that the situation at the freight gate will probably be the same as during the epidemic, and that the shortage of medicines will certainly increase, and with the arrival of the Chinese New Year, the public's "stockpiling" mentality will probably trigger a wave of drug snatching.
More CTWANT News
# Lack of medicine # Red Sea crisis # Lack of medicine # Original medicine

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Content: 2 major drugs are in short supply, FDA says. Both are widely prescribed to children.

NEW!

Drug shortages continue in the U.S., even as the COVID-19 pandemic nears the end of its third year.

Two drugs commonly prescribed to children — Adderall and liquid amoxicillin — recently joined the list, the Food and Drug Administration says.

The FDA announced last month that it was talking to manufacturers about a shortage of Adderall, the combination drug of amphetamine mixed salts used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Parents are also discovering liquid amoxicillin — an important antibiotic used to treat bacterial infections — is in short supply, according to the FDA. It added the oral solution of the antibiotic to its list of drug shortages on Oct. 28.

Both drugs are widely used by children as well as adults. The amoxicillin shortage comes at a vulnerable time, as we enter cold and flu season and U.S. hospitals continue to fill with respiratory infections. Amoxicillin is often used to treat ear infections and bronchitis.

The reason for the shortages? The FDA didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday. However, the agency cited a few factors on its website, including quality and manufacturing issues.

“There have been other reasons such as production delays at the manufacturer and delays companies have experienced receiving raw materials and components from suppliers,” the agency says. “Discontinuations are another factor contributing to shortages.

“FDA can’t require a firm to keep making a drug it wants to discontinue. Sometimes these older drugs are discontinued by companies in favor of newer, more profitable drugs.”

For a list of all drugs currently in short supply, visit FDA.gov.

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This report examines specific cases where supply chain disruptions, demand spikes, and manufacturing delays have directly impacted patient care, along with the responses from healthcare authorities.

Title:

Content: Nationwide Adderall shortage impacting area pharmacies in the Panhandle

Published: Oct. 19, 2022 at 5:07 PM CDT|Updated: 19 minutes ago

AMARILLO, Texas (KFDA) - The Food and Drug Administration has declared a nationwide Adderall shortage and the Panhandle is feeling the affects.

The FDA blames the shortage on manufacturing delays.

Health experts say a shortage in stimulant medications is actually not a rare occurrence.

“The amount of medication that is produced is limited and regulated by the government, so there have been other years where towards the end of the year in particular, we start to struggle with supply issues. In this case, however, while that does seem to be probably one of the contributing factors, the other issue we’re facing, at least what we’re hearing about it right now, is that the manufacturing delays have been an issue and some of that has been secondary to the labor shortages,” said Dr. Carolyn Lentsch-Parcells, pediatrician and assistant professor at Burnett School of Medicine at TCU.

Martin Tipton Pharmacy is being impacted by this shortage.

“We’re having to order from various manufacturers right now, not our normal manufactures just because we cannot get them from our normal ones,” said Mark Vogler, Martin Tipton Pharmacy.

Fortunately its patients have been able to get their needed medication, just a different brand.

Amarillo Pharmacy is also being impacted, saying the drug has been back ordered for the past two months.

The Amarillo Pharmaceutical Care Center at Texas Tech Physicians is also seeing a back order on one of the strengths of the drug.

“The drug company manufacturers short-acting and extended-release, for example. So, a pharmacist, in this situation, will work collaboratively with the patient’s provider to find an available strength and dosage to meet the patient’s needs until the original strength becomes available again,” said Amarillo Pharmaceutical Care Center at Texas Tech Physicians.

Dr. Lentsch-Parcells acknowledged this may be an uneasy time for those depending on Adderall, especially with the end of the semester and holidays approaching. She encourages you to reach out to your providers.

“There are various strategies that we will sometimes use to help our patients get the best care possible, while we are trying to ride out the shortage, so that might be changing dosage or using dosage forms that are available to replace their typical medication,” said Dr. Lentsch-Parcells

She emphasizes not to make any changes to your medications without speaking to your providers first.

Pharmacy chains, like CVS and Walgreens, both confirm they are seeing intermittent supply issues with the generic form of the drug.

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Content: Gazeta.ru
7,987 followers
Roszdravnadzor warned about delays in the delivery of drugs to pharmacies
Roszdravnadzor warns of delays in the delivery of medicines to pharmacies - according to the department, the delays will be temporary and are associated with increased demand and logistical problems, TASS reports.
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Content: HRT drugs rationed to three months as supply crisis grows

The Health Secretary Sajid Javid has brought in emergency protocols to ensure there is enough of the key products to go round

HRT is to be subject to emergency rationing measures as the supply crisis grows.

The Health Secretary has authorised new protocols - limiting prescriptions of key products to three months - in a bid to ensure there are enough to go round.

Manufacturing and supply problems have fuelled shortages of some hormone treatments while demand has risen by two-thirds in the past year.

On Friday night one of the leading manufacturers of HRT said their supplies will not increase until June.

Besins Healthcare, which manufactures the popular treatment Oestrogel, said it was planning to increase in supplies in response to rising demand, but said it would take several months for this to happen.

In March, the Telegraph revealed a growing black market in HRT with women resorting to “bartering and swapping bottles” or paying £50 for a single pack. Since then more and more women have told how they have been forced to share supplies or rush from one pharmacy to another to find supplies.

Team will tackle shortages

On Friday Sajid Javid said fixing shortages would be a “national mission” as he deployed Madeleine McTernan, head of the vaccines taskforce, to run a new team tackling HRT shortages.

Hours later, he ordered that urgent action be taken to ensure that women are able to access supplies in the short term.

The Serious Shortage Protocols (SSPs) will limit supplies of three key products - Oestrogel, Ovestin cream and Premique Low Dose - to three months.

The order, which will expire at the end of July, asks pharmacists to limit orders regardless of what the prescription says.

Until now women have been able to have prescriptions for up to 12 months at a time.

Plans to cut prescription charges for women on 12-month prescriptions have now been delayed until April 2023.

Officials said that any woman whose supply is limited to three months, despite having been issued a longer prescription, would not be expected to pay a prescription charge until the order was fulfilled in full.

Imposing the limits would mean more women are able to access the medication they want, officials said.

Women in some areas have already told how their supplies had been limited to one month.

Mr Javid said he would not hesitate to take “decisive action” to tackle the problems.

“This next step will ensure women across the UK will be able to reliably access this vital medication and maintain this lifeline for millions who need it,” he said.

Officials said the vast majority of HRT products, including alternatives to those affected, remain available.

On Friday night a spokeswoman for Besins Healthcare, which manufactures Oestrogel, said: "Currently they are supplying double the quantity supplied at this time last year. The target is to meet demand, including the increase in the average quantity per prescription and growing demand, in June 2022.”

The manufacture of Oestrogel is a “complex, multi-step process”, she added, “so it will take some time to increase capacity to meet the extraordinary demand”.

Women have already reported running out of the drugs and resorting to desperate measures to secure them.

Gayle Stevens-White, 46, a menopause coach from Farnham, said women were “at their wits end” over the shortages. After switching to a different product herself, she had leftover bottles of HRT and has been sending them to those struggling to fill their prescriptions.

“I've got this surplus stock that I'm sitting on, and I just thought, well, I can't let these women who are absolutely desperate [go without]. Their mental health, and their overall wellbeing is just so compromised,” she said.

“It would only go back to the chemists anyway and then they would give it to the people that needed it, so I thought I would cut out the middleman.”

Carolyn Harris, Labour MP for Swansea East, who has campaigned for better access to the drugs, said she had heard of women “driving up and down the motorway to swap patches for gel”, while others are buying “really overpriced stuff on the internet”.

eBay listings for £60

The Telegraph has seen listings of Oestrogel on eBay for £60, a six-fold increase on the typical £9.35 prescription charge.

Sam Menzies, 50, from Aberdeen, resigned from her job this week after being unable to cope without HRT. She was due to fly to London for a trip and after no local pharmacy had Oestrogel in stock, visited chemists all over the capital trying to secure her medication.

“Eventually we found one chemist in Waterloo train station that had a bottle,” she said.

The chemist told her she was “lucky” to secure it. “I don't feel that lucky, it's not a word that’s crossing my mind right now,”she said.

Ms Harris said the surge in demand for HRT should not have come as a surprise to manufacturers or health officials.

“They knew it was coming in, it's not a new thing, it's been building year-on-year. We’re prescribing more HRT now per month than we were prescribing per year,” she said.

“So why on earth have they allowed it to get to this situation?”

The SSPs, which are set to expire on Friday July 29, allow community pharmacists to supply the three specified HRT products according to the protocol rather than the written prescription, without needing to seek authorisation from the prescriber.

Officials said this would “even out” distribution of demand for products such as Oestrogels which have recently experienced issues as demand rose.

They said pharmacists were expected to use their professional judgment when deciding to apply the SSP and patients must be consulted.

## Key Medication Shortages and Patient Impacts

### 1.

Title:

Content: Healthcare companies moved higher as tech companies continue to enter the space.

Facebook parent Meta Platforms has created a tool to predict the structure of hundreds of millions of proteins using artificial intelligence. Researchers say it promises to deepen scientists' understanding of biology, and perhaps speed the discovery of new drugs.

Meanwhile, a drug used to extend the lives of people with advanced prostate cancer is in short supply and will be for months, leaving some patients with no treatment option as the manufacturer works to ramp up production. The Food and Drug Administration said last week the availability of Pluvicto is limited as manufacturer Novartis struggles to meet demand. The drugmaker said the shortage stems from manufacturing and delivery issues.

Write to Amy Pessetto at amy.pessetto@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

03-16-23 1727ET

Antibiotic Shortages (Amoxicillin)
**Affected Regions:** Global, particularly EU countries and United States
**Time Period:** 2022-2023

During the respiratory infection season, shortages of amoxicillin became critical in multiple countries.

This antibiotic is essential for treating common childhood infections like ear infections and bronchitis.

The shortage occurred at a particularly vulnerable time when hospitals were experiencing high volumes of respiratory infections.

**Patient Impact:** Children and adults suffering


# Global Medication Shortages: A Comprehensive Report (2021-2024)

## Executive Summary

Medication shortages have emerged as a critical global health challenge affecting both developed and developing nations between 2021 and 2024.

This report examines documented cases where supply chain disruptions, demand spikes, and manufacturing delays have directly impacted patient care, along with governmental and institutional responses to these crises.

## Key Findings by Region and Medication Type

### Europe and European Union

**Affected Medications:**
- Antibiotics (particularly amoxicillin)
- Cold and flu medications
- Respiratory infection treatments
- Pediatric medications

**Causes:**
- Supply chain disruptions
- Increased demand for respiratory medications during flu season
- Manufacturing capacity limitations
- Post-pandemic immunity weakening due to social distancing measures

**Patient Impact:**
- Patients unable to access essential antibiotics for common infections
- Parents struggling to find pediatric formulations
- Healthcare providers

# Global Medication Shortages: A Comprehensive Report (2021-2024)

## Executive Summary

Medication shortages have emerged as a critical global health challenge affecting both developed and developing nations between 2021 and 2024.

Title:

Content: There is not enough medicine in the EU
19 January 2023, 05: 20
ASTANA.
KAZINFORM - The European Union is suffering from a shortage of medicines.
Deficiency of antibiotics, such as amoxicillin, drugs against colds, flu and other respiratory infections, as well as some drugs for children, reports MIA "Kazinform" with reference to euronews.com.
In most countries, the situation is considered critical, but since such goods from pharmacies do not disappear at all, citizens are not advised to make stocks.
Doctors note a weakening in the population of natural immunity due to protection against coronavirus such as social distancing.
The main reasons for the sharp increase in demand, which have been identified, is the high prevalence of respiratory diseases with a lack of production capacity.
As pharmaceutical issues are being addressed at the national level, Governments are already taking steps to overcome the shortage
These measures include the sale of generics and the replacement of requested medicines with similar ones.
In some countries, some formulations have been changed, for example, drugs are offered in the form of syrups instead of tablets, so that children are more willing to take them.
"Pediatric drugs are generally now less available in the form of conventional tablets," said Steffen Tierstrup, chief medical officer of the European Medicines Agency. "Therefore, where children are more ill, the need for pediatric drugs is higher than for adult drugs."
A recent study showed that the shortage of drugs in Spain increased by 38% over the year.
The decline in their production was affected by inflation, high energy prices, shortages of raw materials and the effects of the pandemic.
“We need diversification, ” said Ilaria Passarani, head of the EU Pharmaceutical Group.“ Of course, it would be useful to return to Europe the production of some critical materials, such as active ingredients.
But we can't return all the production of all the materials we use for drugs.
This entails problems such as the increase in pharmacy prices associated with the implementation of environmental laws, labor laws, which are not necessarily enforced in other regions. ”
In March, the European Commission will present a revised version of the EU pharmaceutical legislation, which will include stricter supply obligations, earlier notification of shortages and seizures of medicines, and better informing the public about available stocks.
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Content: Chairman of the Board of Directors and Editors
Mohamad Elbaz
Chairman of the Board of Directors and Editors
Mohamad Elbaz
The Minister of Health has promised to solve the problem of lack of medicine.
He added that the private sector will be involved in the management of hospitals.
In response to a question from MP Mustafa Salem, Undersecretary of the Planning and Budget Committee, in the meetings of the Committee today to discuss the budget of the Ministry of Health and its affiliates, Minister of Health, Dr. Khalid Abdul Ghaffar, stressed that the resources available to the Ministry of Health are insufficient to provide appropriate services according to the standards set.
He added that the private sector will be involved in the management and operation of some hospitals from the beginning, or existing hospitals, which have problems and mismanagement.
He explained that the prices will not increase at all, and the citizen will not be harmed because he will receive the best service at the same prices without any increase, pointing out that the patient instead of going to the hospital and does not find the appropriate service or does not find the required doctor will go to hospitals at any time and find the appropriate medical service night and day.
Lack of medication
Regarding the shortage of medicine, Abdel Ghaffar stressed that the previous period was a problem due to the dollar crisis, which is almost non-existent now, but the production lines in the factories are still not ready to work with the same efficiency and sufficient production capacity required.
He pointed out that most drugs away from oncology drugs and some other diseases are produced 95% of them locally.
He added that the cost of producing the treatment has increased significantly, and the producers are exposed to large losses, and a meeting has been held between the ministry and the competent chambers, the Unified Procurement Authority, the Drug Authority and all concerned parties to develop appropriate solutions to this problem and maintain the pharmaceutical industry.
On the position of the hospitals being implemented, especially in Sohag, Dr. Anwar Ismail, Assistant Minister, said that 20 hospitals will be handed over and operated this year in the Republic, including in the governorate of Sohag, Sagalta General Hospital and Gerga General Hospital. He added that 10 new hospitals will be established this year, including one in Sohag.

Title:

Content: Drug supply problems have worsened in Estonia
This year, pharmacies in Estonia faced a much larger shortage of drugs than a year earlier.
Problems with supplies are caused by both increased demand and shortage of raw materials, reports rus.err with reference to "Actual chamber".
This spring, parents faced a shortage of antibiotics and antipyretic drugs suitable for children, and in the fall, the Sorbister drug for renal patients had to be issued from the state reserve stock, since it was not enough due to supply problems in pharmacies.
Hospitals are also facing a severe shortage of medicines this year.
“For example, hospitals use very important drugs to treat the consequences of heart attacks and strokes, the supply problems of which have been observed for a year, but thanks to good cooperation, we were able to ensure that no one was left without treatment, ” said Marco Tiisler, head of the Import and Export Supervision Department of the Drug Department.
In 2021, there was a shortage of 183 drugs in pharmacies, last year - 359, as of the end of this year - 450 drugs, and in the case of 130 drugs, the cause of the deficiency is unknown.
The second significant reason was a sudden surge in demand, for example, for the drug Ozempic, which is popular among those who lose weight, but drugs can be in short supply due to problems with production.
- Producers lack the active ingredient.
The active substances come from third countries, they are not always available, this was stated by one of the largest European manufacturers of antibiotics, - said Tiisler.
Drug supply problems put not only patients in a difficult position, but also doctors who have to quickly find replacements, sometimes in conditions of scarce information about alternatives.
If earlier, in the case of a shortage of drugs, the patient had to pay the full cost of the drug prescribed as a substitute, recently the Health Insurance Fund, as an exception, decided to extend the discount to some alternatives.
According to Lee Rootslane, head of the Union of Pharmacies, problems with the supply of medicines are a growing problem throughout Europe.
- This year, in cooperation with the Drug Department and family doctors, we made recommendations so that if a problem arises, we do not solve it after the fact, but try to provide some solutions and avoid panic.
In the case of children ’ s syrups, people read about the shortage of syrup, went to the pharmacy and took two syrups instead of the usual one, ” Rootslane said.
The drug department recommends having a weekly supply of non-prescription drugs and a monthly supply of prescription drugs at home.
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Content: In Israeli pharmacies shortage of drugs: details
The shortage is due to logistics problems and increased demand.
In health insurance funds and private pharmacies, there is an acute shortage of cold medicines, the demand for which is growing in the winter.
This is reported by Mako.
In many pharmacies, it is impossible to find individual types of "Akamol" (paracetamol).
There was a shortage of medicines for colds, coughs, sore throats.
The shortage is due, among other things, to logistics problems and increased demand.
Pharmacists Association Chairman David Pepo spoke to the deputy director of the Department of Pharmacy at the Ministry of Health last week, and nothing has been done since, he said.
Earlier we told that soon in Israel will launch a pilot project on the operation of autonomous buses, which will result in the country will appear commercial bus routes with cars without drivers.
Now announced four groups of companies that have won the competition of the Ministry of Transport for the implementation of the pilot project.
The cost of the pilot project is 61 million shekels, half of which is provided by the state.
It was organized jointly by the Ministry of Transport, the Public Transport Authority, the Innovation Authority and Netivei Ayalon.
Find out more here.
Cursor also reported that the number of tourists in Israel has been growing since the beginning of the year.
So, since January 2022, 2.2 million tourists have visited the country.
There was also an increase in the number of Israelis who left the country as tourists.
In addition, the Ministry of Health took measures in connection with concerns about the shortage of epidural anesthesia kits.
Read the latest news from Israel and the world on the Kursor channel in Telegram.
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The Minister of Public Health in the caretaker government, Dr. Hamad Hassan, held a meeting with the heads of directorates and departments in the Ministry of Public Health, in which he discussed the path that is being followed to devise solutions in the health field, especially with regard to the crisis of medicine and the hospital sector.
In his intervention, Hassan was keen to thank the staff of the Ministry individually because they are still committed to supporting the citizen despite all the difficult circumstances prevailing.
With regard to medicine, he announced a recent agreement reached after several meetings including the Pharmaceutical Importers Syndicate and the Central Bank, in which the bank confirmed the continuation of the monthly support of the drug in the amount of fifty million dollars, and began to see the effects of this in the hope of continuing to regulate imports as quickly as possible, as pledged by the importing companies of medicines under some detail that is coordinated with the bank.
In this regard, Minister Hassan announced that "the Central Bank approved three weeks ago bills for pharmaceutical companies worth eighty-seven million dollars (87 million dollars), and a week ago on eleven million dollars (11 million dollars), adding that today the Central Bank approves the import of medicines worth thirty million dollars (30 million dollars), which must achieve a breakthrough in the drug crisis in a period ranging from five days to a week, especially with regard to medicines for cancer and incurable diseases." Infant Vaccines and Baby Milk ".
The Minister of Public Health confirmed that he is in the process of forming the technical academic committee to study the files submitted for emergency import under conditions that ensure quality and competitive prices, hoping that permits will be given to this import at the beginning of next week.
He called for "not to rely on the negatives marketed in some media and social media," stressing that the Ministry of Public Health "is reliable and works within the laws in force, and all it aspires to at this stage is to succeed in keeping up with the citizen in this crisis and alleviate its burdens."
He added: “Today, the pricing index was introduced by adhering to sixty-five percent of the market exchange rate. ”
Minister Hassan explained that the pricing on 12 thousand Lebanese pounds took into account that the companies bear 15 percent on the basis of the 85 / 15 agreement and 20 percent marketing, distribution and conferences is not the time now, so 35 percent of the market price is deducted; if this price is 18 thousand Lebanese pounds becomes 12 thousand pounds after the aforementioned discount, and if the exchange rate 21 thousand pounds becomes 13 thousand and five hundred pounds after the discount.
He pointed out that the final decision regarding the pricing of OTC and Acute drugs has been issued and all warehouse owners, importers and stockholders should know this, and the importers union is aware of this, and 90 percent of importers have agreed to import within the pricing of 65 percent of the dollar exchange rate in the market.
Hospitals
Hassan addressed the issue of hospitals, stressing that "in coordination with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, Ms. Zeina Akar, the adoption of a new tariff soon for medical laboratory and radiological works," adding: "The insurance of fuel for hospitals was discussed yesterday in the government serail, where the Minister of Energy unanimously adopted the provision of fuel for hospitals and not to abandon them."
"The hand is extended to anyone willing to help."
Pandemic.
On the epidemiological issue, Minister Hassan pointed to a "significant increase in cases," wishing citizens "to register on the vaccine platform, noting that this registration achieved a record yesterday with the number of twenty-two thousand people," thanking all those who help the Ministry of Public Health, whether the World Bank or friendly countries that provide donations of vaccines such as Kuwait and Qatar.
Minister Hassan renewed the call for "the adoption of muzzle and distance and the conduct of activities in the open air, especially with the presence of a large amount of expatriation in Lebanon," regretting the difficulty of tracking expatriation and contacts, as it turns out that "the phone numbers given to teams monitoring the ministry are inaccurate, which poses a danger to society."
He mentioned the two hot numbers for receiving complaints, communications and reviews: 1214 and 1787.
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Content: 2 major drugs are in short supply, FDA says. Both are widely prescribed to children.

NEW!

Drug shortages continue in the U.S., even as the COVID-19 pandemic nears the end of its third year.

Two drugs commonly prescribed to children — Adderall and liquid amoxicillin — recently joined the list, the Food and Drug Administration says.

The FDA announced last month that it was talking to manufacturers about a shortage of Adderall, the combination drug of amphetamine mixed salts used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Parents are also discovering liquid amoxicillin — an important antibiotic used to treat bacterial infections — is in short supply, according to the FDA. It added the oral solution of the antibiotic to its list of drug shortages on Oct. 28.

Both drugs are widely used by children as well as adults. The amoxicillin shortage comes at a vulnerable time, as we enter cold and flu season and U.S. hospitals continue to fill with respiratory infections. Amoxicillin is often used to treat ear infections and bronchitis.

The reason for the shortages? The FDA didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday. However, the agency cited a few factors on its website, including quality and manufacturing issues.

“There have been other reasons such as production delays at the manufacturer and delays companies have experienced receiving raw materials and components from suppliers,” the agency says. “Discontinuations are another factor contributing to shortages.

“FDA can’t require a firm to keep making a drug it wants to discontinue. Sometimes these older drugs are discontinued by companies in favor of newer, more profitable drugs.”

For a list of all drugs currently in short supply, visit FDA.gov.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com.

Spencer Kent may be reached at skent@njadvancemedia.com.

If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation.

This report examines documented cases where supply chain disruptions, demand spikes, and manufacturing delays have directly impacted patient care, along with governmental and institutional responses to these crises.

Title:

Content: Nationwide Adderall shortage impacting area pharmacies in the Panhandle

Published: Oct. 19, 2022 at 5:07 PM CDT|Updated: 19 minutes ago

AMARILLO, Texas (KFDA) - The Food and Drug Administration has declared a nationwide Adderall shortage and the Panhandle is feeling the affects.

The FDA blames the shortage on manufacturing delays.

Health experts say a shortage in stimulant medications is actually not a rare occurrence.

“The amount of medication that is produced is limited and regulated by the government, so there have been other years where towards the end of the year in particular, we start to struggle with supply issues. In this case, however, while that does seem to be probably one of the contributing factors, the other issue we’re facing, at least what we’re hearing about it right now, is that the manufacturing delays have been an issue and some of that has been secondary to the labor shortages,” said Dr. Carolyn Lentsch-Parcells, pediatrician and assistant professor at Burnett School of Medicine at TCU.

Martin Tipton Pharmacy is being impacted by this shortage.

“We’re having to order from various manufacturers right now, not our normal manufactures just because we cannot get them from our normal ones,” said Mark Vogler, Martin Tipton Pharmacy.

Fortunately its patients have been able to get their needed medication, just a different brand.

Amarillo Pharmacy is also being impacted, saying the drug has been back ordered for the past two months.

The Amarillo Pharmaceutical Care Center at Texas Tech Physicians is also seeing a back order on one of the strengths of the drug.

“The drug company manufacturers short-acting and extended-release, for example. So, a pharmacist, in this situation, will work collaboratively with the patient’s provider to find an available strength and dosage to meet the patient’s needs until the original strength becomes available again,” said Amarillo Pharmaceutical Care Center at Texas Tech Physicians.

Dr. Lentsch-Parcells acknowledged this may be an uneasy time for those depending on Adderall, especially with the end of the semester and holidays approaching. She encourages you to reach out to your providers.

“There are various strategies that we will sometimes use to help our patients get the best care possible, while we are trying to ride out the shortage, so that might be changing dosage or using dosage forms that are available to replace their typical medication,” said Dr. Lentsch-Parcells

She emphasizes not to make any changes to your medications without speaking to your providers first.

Pharmacy chains, like CVS and Walgreens, both confirm they are seeing intermittent supply issues with the generic form of the drug.

Title:

Content: Edil Baisalov held a meeting on the supply of medicines
In Kyrgyzstan, Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers Edil Baisalov held a working meeting on the issue of drug supply in a period of sharp aggravation of the international situation.
Reported by the press service of the Cabinet.
The deputy chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers noted that the provision of medicines to the population is a matter of national security and one of the most important state functions, and therefore, during the period of disruption of previously established supply channels, it requires immediate and comprehensive measures on the part of the Cabinet.
"Now there is concern among citizens about the stability of supplies and regulation of prices for medicines and medical products.
Pharmaceutical companies, for their part, raise the issue of uninterrupted supply of goods, taking into account the latest events in the region and high fluctuations in the exchange rate, ” said Edil Baisalov.
Following the meeting, Edil Baisalov instructed to draw up a complete list of vital medicines in order to establish a clear and sustainable supply logistics.
In addition, the deputy chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers gave a number of instructions on the launch of production lines and the development of the pharmaceutical industry.
The meeting participants also discussed and approved a number of other proposals and anti-crisis measures to ensure the stability of the pharmaceutical market.
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## Key Findings by Region and Medication Type

### Europe and European Union

**Affected Medications:**
- Antibiotics (particularly amoxicillin)
- Cold and flu medications
- Respiratory infection treatments
- Pediatric medications

**Causes:**
- Supply chain disruptions
- Increased demand for respiratory medications during flu season
- Manufacturing capacity limitations
- Post-pandemic immunity weakening due to social distancing measures

**Patient Impact:**
- Patients unable to access essential antibiotics for common infections
- Parents struggling to find pediatric formulations
- Healthcare providers

Title:

Content: DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) – With Christmas fast-approaching, families have a new item on their shopping list: flu medication, and the surge in cases is making that more difficult to find.

With the level of illness spreading in the community, Cedar Care Village Pharmacy Director Justin Coby said it could indicate we are headed toward a drug shortage.

“It is common supply and demand,” Coby said. “The demand is high. Flu rates are the worst they’ve been in over a decade.”

Whether you or your children need medication to manage flu symptoms, or antibiotics for an infection, these medications might be hard to find right now.

“You’re going to see folks struggling to find those products staying on the shelves because of how aggressive this influenza season is,” Coby said.

2 NEWS reporter Allison Gens walked through several stores in the Miami Valley Friday to look at the supply of medicines and saw empty spaces on the shelves, and even a sign telling customers they’re experiencing supplier shortages.

Coby said both prescription and over-the-counter medications are in short supply right now, and there are a number of factors, including two slow flu seasons prior.

“We knew it was going to be a bad season, but if you think about it, from the time to manufacture through the supply chain to get to the end user, they would have had to have known that for a long time,” Coby said.

Coby recommends calling around to different stores and local pharmacies to see what’s in stock.

If you cannot find the medicine you need, contact your doctor about the options you have to manage symptoms at home.

Dr. Jordan Knox, family physician with Kettering Health Springfield, said the key is plenty of rest and plenty of water.

“The best thing is to take frequent small sips of water, two teaspoons every three to five minutes,” Knox said. “It really does add up, and it’s easy enough on the stomach.”

Knox said with medicines in short supply, the best step is prevention. He said everyone should be washing their hands, staying home when sick and even wearing a mask when not feeling well.

He also said it’s not too late to get the flu shot.

“With holiday travel, gatherings coming up, if you haven’t already had your influenza vaccination this season, please get one in the next couple of days or as soon as possible,” Knox said.

Flu season typically peaks between December and February, and some experts predict the supply chain issues could continue into early next year.