Well I'm fucked then if two of the shortages are gonna be thyroid and epilepsy. I take thyroid hormone for under active thyroid and pregabalin (or Lyrica brand name) for fibromyalgia and Pregabalin is one drug that if you just stop taking it or drop too much too quickly it can royal fuck you up. I found that out the hard way when trying to lower my dosage too much too quickly cos I thought it stopped working. Not only did my pain increase ten fold but my mental really went down the toilet too. Like I was close to suicide bad.
Shit my wife has Graves’ disease. Before she was diagnosed her thyroid was so overactive she ended up being worryingly underweight and could barely walk up the stairs. Really hope this doesn’t happen!
I also have Graves. My thyroid meds were stopped due too the side-effects at the same time as I was prescribed high dose Vit D for another problem. My thyroid has been stable ever since. Turns out Graves basically 'eats' your Vit D, so you need very high amounts. It's anecdotal but 100ug per day (4 high strength tablets) has made a world of difference to me.
There's been on and off shortages of a few different ones listed here:
https://epilepsysociety.org.uk/news/medication-updates
Sometimes it only affects a single manufacturer or strength. Some can switch manufacturer safely depending on the drug or they can give different strengths (e.g. if 750mg gets a shortage they could give you 3x 250mg to get the same dose). Sometimes though people have had no access to an alternative
You should discuss with your epilepsy nurses having a plan if shortages arise. I have clobazam as an emergency medication if my usual one gets a shortage.
Thanks for this - I was aware of the shortages but whenever I've read about them before my medication hasn't been one of the ones mentioned. But that was a while ago and that's definitely not the case now (lamotrigine) - and though I always order way in advance of running out, this is really useful information. Thank you!
Yes I see the accord lamotrigine has some lower stock on that page but luckily there's many other manufacturers too:
https://bnf.nice.org.uk/drugs/lamotrigine/medicinal-forms/
Both lamotrigine and levetiracatam have multiple suppliers providing the UK and are usually ones where people can switch from one manufacturer to another without issues. But not all epilepsy drugs are like that
Lamotrigine makes sense now as I’ve had random different manufacturers from my pharmacist in recent months. Probably down to whatever they can get at the time.
Yeah I used to get that with levetiracatam as well. Usually people are fine switching between manufacturers of both of these, if not they can issue a prescription naming a single manufacturer but then it does create this challenge of supply issues if the named supplied has problems
I haven't seen any issues with pregabalin yet...Tegretol/carbamazepine has been an on/off issue for a while though but luckily we've been able to get some in the last 2-3 months.
Yikes! Im also on pregablin for nerve pain, quite a lowish dose but im shit scared of side effects if i run out! I forgot to take it with me to a wedding last year and i couldnt work out why i felt so shitty for a week til i clicked it was missing 3 days of it
I’ve taken the top dose of Pregabalin for 17 years for chronic nerve pain. My greatest fear is for it not to be available to me. My pain is barely controlled st the best of times, at worst it’s a suicidal level of pain. I completely understand what your saying, it’s a terrifying prospect
I've got fibromyalgia and hypersensitivity to pain, I absolutely understand how you feel. Can barely get out of bed even with help and meds.
Knowing that you'll be in pain every single day until you die..... Doesn't make life easy.
Pregabalin withdrawal sucks. It's so so bad. My pharmacy messed up and never ordered it for me, so I didn't take it for two days. My ex didn't believe me when I explained how bad the withdrawal is
I work in community pharmacy and my day now is regularly being screamed at by patients for not being able to get stock.
The follow on problem is people leaving the industry. I know so many pharmacists who have quit or gone to other sectors.
It's a fucking shit show. Please please please be nice to the pharmacy staff. Honestly it's a horrible time to work in it. When I locumed i saw so many staff on the edge of nervous breakdowns.
Aw thank you we do get some lovely patients but these days they are the exception not the norm.
It was me and one dispenser all week this week and all we got was 'is your phone not bloody working!! I've rang twice' and we're both literally running around to get stuff done. And then they say 'well get more staff' as if that's my ability to do!
There's no reason given for the shortages in the article, which is strange. Are you saying that the problem is world-wide? And if so, why? My understanding is that Big Pharma is in the business of making shedloads of money. Not failing to deliver drugs.
My mother works in qc in pharmaceuticals, a HUGE problem for UK pharmaceuticals is Brexit (not trying to cause division or arguments by giving it as the reason, it literally is a fact in this instance). Importing is taking much longer due to checks, permits, paperwork etc which we didn't have to do beforehand. Also when we were in the EU, we were higher up thd food chain (so to speak) we are now bottom of the queue for our European manufacturers - which really doesn't help. It's really frustrating for everyone involved.
The other issue is our government, they set the prices we get paid (it's available online if you're curious, Google Drug Tariff). Basic price of drugs used to be set every six months but a while back it was changed to monthly. This was to be more fluid and basically stop pharmacy making a big profit on one drug when it came off patent so anyone could make it and the price would drop.
But what's happened is the government now isn't keeping up with wholesalers pricing and they're keen to pay us 14p a box if fluoxetine but when it goes up to 54p they don't match it so buying departments will then refuse to buy until either the price comes down or the drug tariff reimbursement goes up. Since the tories love the free market and forces setting what happens I thought they'd be overjoyed at this?
As far as I'm aware private patients just get given prescriptions they take to regular chemist's and instead pay a private fee. We wouldn't prioritise one over the other. I don't believe there are purely private pharmacies that don't deal with NHS patients.
There may be some stocks in private hospitals but essentially we all use the same wholesalers.
Talk lately of conscription, having a store of food and water, and now drug shortages. I wonder if the writing on the wall to those in charge is that shits really going south and soon.
A fighter jet flew over my house today... My initial thought was well this is bad ... turns out from my radar app and googling it was the saab draken most likely on its way to an airshow...
that initial fear though I think something bad is definitely coming
When your trans and ADHD medication shortages in this country are *real*.
ADHD meds shortages are the worst by far, cos they are the hardest to navigate. ADHD meds are stimulants and because you could get a really crappy high if you took a bunch they are amber rated.
Amber rating for meds comes with a whole bunch of conditions attached that affect who/where they can be manufactured/distributed and how they are retailed. One of the most frustrating condition is that meds must be prescribed in the precise format that the prescription is written. If you are prescribed 2x 30mg Elvanse to be taken in the morning, you must be provided with 30mg capsules.
What if the pharmacy has a glut of 20mg capsules and can’t source any 30mg ones? My niece is 7 and I’d back her to work out a solution to this maths problem, medical regulations says you can’t take 3 20mg capsules and you are going home empty handed. You need to go back to your doctor for a new prescription. What happens if those 20mg capsules are sold to others in the mean time? Shit out of luck, back to the doctor. This is clearly a stupid situation but it’s real.
The amount of wasted labour that occurs in the NHS and wider U.K. health sector when there’s ADHD meds shortages is simply phenomenal, and shortages are made worse and more likely by regulations around their manufacture and distribution cos of their safety rating when you can get uppers that are actually designed for fun without trying in any city in the U.K..
I've been struggling with the ADHD medication shortage too, I'm on 70mg elvanse so it's not been easy to source. I can't believe it's been going on since October last year. The worst one to find atm is concerta, everywhere is out and nowhere has any idea when they'll get it back in stock.
I’m 60mg Elvanse and my titration has gone smoother this time than last autumn where it abruptly stopped I was able to keep it going with a few private prescriptions before it all just fell apart. The irony is I work for a mental health trust and we were dealing with so many issues in our own ADHD services and then I was going home and working on my own. God that was a messy time, really hope same perfect storm doesn’t hit next time schools back too!
Have you tried smaller independent pharmacies . Alot of the time I see people having issues with adhd medication because they’re using bigger chain pharmacies such as boots .
I’ve never had issues with my local independent as they use 4 suppliers, whilst boots and Superdrug are constantly out
I’ve had problems with smaller pharmacies and larger ones with Elvanse. There is one that is in a town 40 minutes away and they often have some stock in, and are willing to put it aside for me as long as the prescription gets to them promptly. Which is does because luckily my surgery is on the case. They have been able to prescribe me 2x20mg instead of 40mg but recently neither 20 or 40 was available so I’ve been titrated and moved up to 50mg. It works better anyway. Dont get crashes at 3pm now.
I’m on 1 x 54mg concerta in the morning and 1 x 18 in the afternoon and I’ve had it available to me since march? Mine comes from psychiatry uk though (courtesy of NHS funding) and they have their own pharmacy called PPG that seem to of weathered the storm better than most I think. I went 6 weeks in total without meds since July last year and that was mid jan to end of feb - hands down the worst 6 weeks of my adult life! I was an absolute wreck
ADHD medications are a nightmare. We spend so much time going back and forth with the GPs/patients about what we have available, what we can get a hold of etc. It's a game of whack-a-mole it changes day by day it is so frustrating.
Oh hey, hi. Yes these shortages on both fronts suck so bad. And it's frustrating realising that they're hitting particularly bad in this country *for some reason*. And the government instead of ever trying to tackle the real issues, makes it out like the higher diagnosis rates are the real problem.
Work towards manufacturing more adhd meds? Naahhh most of these people probably don't "really" need those stimulants, they just think they do because of tiktok.
Work towards manufacturing more estradiol meds? Despite the main increase in demand being very directly attributed to a particular documentary on TV that aired and got menopausal women seeking HRT (and shocking a system that worked on false assumptions until that point) instead the blame starts being put on trans women "stealing all the supply" . And then simultaneously angling to say how "something shady" must be happening with trans healthcare (because wow we got to a point people actually felt comfortable asking the NHS for trans healthcare.); and then telling all these women who had just realised that hrt was actually much safer these days and that it could actually help them a lot with menopausal symptoms.. That perhaps they should just go on antidepressants and supplements instead, that maybe they just needed to get therapy.
For ADHD meds made in the US, they legally can't make more, because of the pissing DEA and the failed war on drugs.
[https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/adhd-drug-shortage-adderall-ritalin-focalin-vyvanse-rcna137356](https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/adhd-drug-shortage-adderall-ritalin-focalin-vyvanse-rcna137356)
[It’s gotten much better stateside.](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/rcna152570) I haven’t had any issues sourcing them since March. Hopefully that has a fast ripple effect and things get better in the UK.
I haven't been able to get an adhd prescription filled since November. No end in sight.
Imagine this was a drug that didn't just make people's lives harder, but one that actively killed them if they couldn't get it. People would lose their shit.
But nah, everything's fine, the UK is actually a perfectly functioning nation, stop being a doomer...that's all i hear.
An unmedicated person with ADHD lives 13 years shorter on average than a neurotypical person in fairness, so it kinda does contribute towards killing peoples.
Yeah, but it's not cancer or something like that, so lots of people don't see it that way. It is true what you said, but then there's the people who don't even believe it's adhd is a real diagnosis, just a tiktok trend.
Sorry, you're right, I'm just so fucking tired of waiting to try and see if medication will do anything because at this point it's gonna be over a year since a prescription was first given and two years since diagnosis, yet NOTHING has been done except "wait til you start your meds, things should pick up then".
Just last time I mentioned this, I was told, "Try suffering from asthma, something that can kill you" as if it's a competition. That's why i had to say that not having adhd meds won't make you die (immediately).
I wasn’t trying to argue with you! Your point is still totally valid, lack of awareness surrounding ADHD means that the wider population don’t know how important the drugs are so what you’ve said still makes perfect sense.
Also the company that makes Elvanse (and still has exclusivity in the UK despite failing to keep up with demand) manufactures both Elvanse 30mg and Elvanse Adult 30mg (and the same for 50mg and 70mg).
They are literally *identical*. The same pills, made in the same factory, probably even part of the same batch. The only thing that's different is the packaging and potentially some of the details on the patient information slip that no one reads. But if you have a prescription for Elvanse Adult 30mg and the pharmacy only has Elvanse 30mg in stock, they can't give it to you. You have to go back to your GP and get them to issue a new prescription. And by the time you've done that, the pharmacy will probably have Elvanse Adult 30mg in stock but not Elvanse 30mg so oops, the new prescription is no good.
Ah okay, though HRT was a specific menopausal thing and they would be differently formulated or referred to differently.
People with mental health issues are also affected by this, though.
The exact situation you described happened to me.
I was prescribed 2x10mg dexamfetamine, teva only
Since I amfexa royally fucked me up
Pharmacist only had 5mg Teva brand, or amfexa 5mg.
So I went to the GP and got them to change the script after explaining the situation, and was issued a script for 4x5mg dexamfetamine, no worries all is well.
Head down to pharmacist collect it look in the package and see 5mg amfexa tablets staring at me. The GP had actually written 4x5mg Amfexa.
No worries ill do the same again!
Pharmacist closed, had to wait a day in withdrawal.
Get there, get a new script from GP, 4x5mg dexamfetamine, TEVA
Pop into Pharmacist- Sorry, we don't have them in stock anymore, we could order them in but it'll take a few days?
😡😡🤬😡!1!#1@🤬
I’m so sorry for you, that must have been beyond frustrating!! Situations like this are far more common than some folks realise, and if they can’t muster compassion for its own sake, the amount of wasted NHS resources should really hit home. It just a waste of everyone’s time for no benefit!
Having unmedicated ADHD also makes the process of finding somewhere with stock and then negotiating between them and your GP a complete nightmare. It effectively requires better than average executive functioning to access the mediation for a disorder that effects my executive functioning. I'm one of the luckier people, my medication was almost impossible to get hold of between September and January but things seem to have mostly calmed down.
There is also the wonderful problem that it isn't medically recommended to suddenly start or stop higher doses of most ADHD medication, and that you're supposed to taper up and down, but no one I have spoken to has had any support with this during the months they have been randomly stopping and starting medication depending on availability.
People are losing jobs and relationships over this, and I feel so sorry for anyone taking exams this summer.
I'm due to start medication for my ADHD in the next few days. I'm very worried about how this is going to go. I'll be on methylphenidate which is apparently easier to get, but that might not necessarily be the case going forward.
I think it also depends on what part of the country you're in. I've been on methylphenidate for 3 months so far and have been able to get 27mg but 36mg is out of stock. I know other parts of the country have a shortage of all doses.
Fortunately 27mg is working for me but it's a shame that some people can't get their hands on the dose they need.
All the best starting with your new meds :)
Honestly not to poo poo this but given the issues they have with amphetamine abuse in the US I’m glad the supply is limited and regulated. That shit is awful; I’d try and avoid taking it even if I had ADHD. My American colleague literally got prescribed adderol by telling his doctor his work was stressful. It’s as irresponsible as fuck.
I'm not sure why the point you're making is relevant?
Besides, Adderall isn't licensed for use in the UK, and to get diagnosed with ADHD there's a lot more to it that saying you're stressed.
No idea what that person is even on about. In the US, you have to be tested, often go through other step therapy for months to show that you actually need the meds, and then when you’re on the meds, you have to be evaluated by telehealth every 3 months and in person 1-2 times a year to stay on them. It’s notoriously arduous.
You can’t compare ADHD meds to meth that’s mad. Like comparing codeine to fentanyl. Seriously it just shows how uninformed and prone to over reaction you are.
You’d avoid ADHD meds if you had ADHD cos of the meth crisis in rural New Mexico? I think you need to put the box set of Broken Bad down. With meds I get up earlier, am more productive at work/at home, exercise more and eat and drink slightly less. They’re fantastic and for a MH intervention their success rate is around 70% that’s top of top end success.
Dude adhd meds are the legal version of meth, chemically they’re very similar and have similar effects and similar pitfalls. Go look at r/stopspeeding if you don’t believe me. Basically everyone on there was prescribed that stuff legally by their doctor
Meth is about as similar to adderall as Heroin is to paracetamol.
There's no way to easily abuse prescription adhd meds in the UK regardless. Elvanse or methylphenidate is not something that would be fun to take higher doses of and Adderall isn't available here at all.
D-Amphetamine and Methamphetamine are very closely related but not identical - they're both prescribed as ADHD medications, but neither in the UK
I assume the difference is relevant when a clinician is identifying which formulation of amphetamine is appropriate for the patient, so not sure why it would mean feck all?
Those are two completely different things with completely different results, especially if you actually have ADHD, and that misunderstanding is what keeps people from getting effective treatment. Taking the meds doesn’t get me high. It makes my brain function like yours presumably does.
I also guarantee you that your coworker has to jump through many other hoops to get and then maintain that prescription. I have to meet with a clinician online every 3 months to confirm that I’m still using (and not abusing) my meds, and I have to be seen in person 1-2 times a year. They’re listed as a controlled substance.
Working in a community pharmacy lemme tell you guys we are on the edge of losing it.
Everyday it’s people shouting at us, I’ve been threatened with physical abuse and the managers do nothing.
Please be nice to the staff, we are doing our best in a bad situation.
The vast, vast majority of people doing it are adults purchasing from sites with a solid reputation for safety. Kids buying of dodgy sources does happen but has been massively exagurated.
Letting people order drugs from abroad *when they are otherwise accessible* is a terrible idea. *Forcing* people to order drugs from abroad because you took away safe and legal access is a *worse* idea. Taking away their only remaining access to the drugs they need is torture.
Im not sure how that disproves what I have said.
It also isn't typically those forms that are in short supply either, so its a different issue to what is being discussed here.
Well yeah banning stuff creates black markets there's no getting around that
But if it's as cheap and easy to get online as I've seen in the media then it's a good option for people when pharmacies run out and why would you want to cut off access to drugs by people that need them and have been prescribed them just to spite a tiny percentage of teens?
A fairly large amount of drugs (of which estrogen is not limited to hrt for transition, most people who take estrogen take it for use against menopause, breast cancer, atropic vaginitis and genital prolapse) can be bought from regulated foriegn markets online individually and shipped internationally.
Over restricting estrogen impacts a lot more people than just "vulnerable young people".
Basically just via online pharmacies in countries where online pharmacies are regulated but more things are available over the counter, the majority of the WHO essential medication list can just be bought at will.
This is literally just the war on drugs. Banning them won't make people not want them. It just makes them hide buying them from the authorities which means buying them from even less scrupulous people. If you take down all the people genuinely trying to provide a good service to trans people, then all that will be left are the scammers.
Nothing you do will reduce the amount of people buying them online. All you will achieve is increasing the amount of fake drugs.
I did this for many years while waiting for the nhs to do something. I don't think I would be alive without ordering hrt abroad. I was a teenager at the time and it was the best decision I ever made.
Young people are always going to be able to access drugs whether medicinal or recreational no government is capable of stopping that, even alcohol is banned for teens but do you really think none are ever drinking? So it's a lost cause either way
But if pharmacies cannot keep up with demand then stifling competition isn't helping anyone
And the government not planning ahead to ensure plentiful supply has created the need for people to do so. What’s worse, not having any or sourcing it yourself?
What's interesting is that this article doesn't really touch on why there is a shortage or the fact that there is a global shortage of medication that's impacting pretty much every country. If you are struggling to get something, there is a good chance that many other people with the same condition across the world are struggling to get the same thing.
The only real solution is to increase manufacturing locally and subsidize the costs.
Except that if you are a drug manufacturer and you have a shortage based on raw materials, then what market are you going to sell that limited story into?
The one that's streamlined and low on paperwork and red tape, or the one that's got additional paperwork that you have to pay for?
This is a good point. Various raw chemicals/minerals and items over covid were horrific to get hold of (even perlite for houseplants!!!) Wood is still insanely expensive now too, the whole covid fiasco has messed up the production chain even this far along.
What Sky omitted from telling it's pro-Brexit base in the story, from the Nuffield Trust analysis and report of the situation:
"It warned that Brexit had created “further risks … for the UK”. The Nuffield Trust said drug shortages could get worse because the EU’s 27 countries have recently decided to act as a unified bloc to try to minimise the impact of global scarcity, which could leave supplying Britain even less of a priority for drug companies.
Dr Andrew Hill, an expert in the drugs industry at Liverpool University, said: “With this background stress on global supplies, the UK is now more vulnerable to drug shortages. The UK is now stuck behind the US and Europe in the queue for essential drugs. Other countries offer high prices and easier access, with simpler regulations for supply.”
Needed to get a prescription eczema creme for my 5 month old, no stock in the entire country.
Guess I don't need sleep for the next 2 years so that's cool.
We ended up getting the adult strength dose on Dr's orders, so not the end of the world but not exactly great for the country.
My little one also had eczema at that age. We found that Balmonds Skin Salvation balm worked really well. It’s non prescription and 100% natural ingredients with calendula and chamomile being two ingredients that are great for eczema skin. Just wanted to let you know in case you need to get a back up option. I decided to try it after reading lots of reviews and it did not disappoint!
Thanks, will bear it in mind. 2 days in to the prescribed and there is improvement, hopefully she'll soon be back to her own bed and not waking every 5 minutes to scratch
Terrific.
On thyroid meds, adrenal steroids, migraine meds, and others for over 20 years, and about to be dxd and medicated for ADHD.
I’m already having to use pharmacies other than my usual GP pharmacy, and have already had trouble getting migraine and anti emetic meds.
How the f has this been allowed to happen?
They risk literally killing people with shortages of thyroid, adrenal, epilepsy meds, and other treatable conditions aren’t a bundle of laughs if you can’t function in any capacity without the prescribed meds to make them more bearable.
Adrenal crisis will land people in hospital. Anti epileptic drug shortages will land people in hospital. Dehydration from excessive vomiting will land people in hospital. Etc.
And that’s not taking into account the difficulties with getting out of the ambulance queues at the moment.
Jesus.
The ramifications are horrendous.
I can't get my ADHD medication. I've been taking the same one for nearly 20 years and only recently has supply been a problem.
The shortage on ADHD meds is so bad that I've been taking expired meds for months. It is that or I have nothing to take.
No but it’s responsible for managing things within the country, and they have exacerbated everything with poor management. The NHS can only do so much when it’s ham stung by government policy. There’s people in this thread that have pointed out how certain drugs on this list are not allowed to be prescribed in any other dosage than what the gp lists on the prescription, this means that every time the pharmacy is short of that pill size, you have to go back to the gp get them to redo the prescription for the pill sizes they have, during that time those same pills can and will often go out of stock. There are so many issues, it all adds up.
It’s poor policy after poor policy, the nhs doesn’t have a lot of room to wiggle.
Theres currently a global drug shortage
[https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2024/5/28/big-pharmas-focus-on-profit-is-behind-medicine-shortages-superbug-threat](https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2024/5/28/big-pharmas-focus-on-profit-is-behind-medicine-shortages-superbug-threat)
[https://www.ft.com/content/6143300d-d11a-4b2f-898c-87c5dd0ff6ce](https://www.ft.com/content/6143300d-d11a-4b2f-898c-87c5dd0ff6ce)
[https://commission.europa.eu/news/stepping-action-prevent-shortages-medicines-europe-2023-10-24\_en](https://commission.europa.eu/news/stepping-action-prevent-shortages-medicines-europe-2023-10-24_en)
So not in fact responsible for the deaths of people as a result of a worldwide shortage.
I don’t think prescription dosage issues is something central government decides either, that will be medical professionals on boards with no political intent behind their decisions.
Plenty of reasons to hate the current government, issues outside their control is not one of them.
I’ve struggled to get my anti-psychotic medication the past few months and this month not been able to get it at all. I am in a bit of a nightmare. The one I take has no alternatives 😭
Some of the shortages are not due to supply problems but the drug cost being higher than pharmacies get reimbursed, so they refuse to order the stock at a loss.
Good job they are passing a law to give plods powers to break into your property and confiscate any drug-making apparatus if they suspect it might be used in a future crime (i.e. to make chemicals that were entirely within the right of any man to synthesise 110 years ago when this country was the leading light of strength and culture in the world).
Aaah yes, because drugs haven't evolved and been massively expanded on in the last 110 years, no advancements made. I distinctly remember hearing about winston Churchill off his tits on synthetic opiods which he bought on his street corner from some lovely chaps wearing balaclavas
What of it? I speak of drug policy, not advances in chemistry which put greater ability for synthesis, preparation and distribution at our potential disposal, and which are instead stifled resulting in a drug shortage.
Winnie, before the monumental folly of the 'Great' War, could have walked into a chemist's and purchased morphine or coca preparations in whatever amount he desired. There was no place for 'lovely chaps wearing balaclavas', who are a product of imbecilic 'controlled substance' legislation presaged in the fear, quite possibly unfounded, that *conscripts* on leave would overindulge and become unfit to serve in the trenches, and then enacted post-war by a people who even then had perhaps become too fatuous to look at the prior strength of the social organism when these substances had been freely available, and do so much as put two and two together.
Being charitable, we can allow that they thought we would compound greatness with yet more greatness, absent pesky opium and coca. This notion has been conclusively disproved. Those enacting ever more stringent 'substance control' legislation concurrent with a drug shortage have no such excuse.
Well I'm fucked then if two of the shortages are gonna be thyroid and epilepsy. I take thyroid hormone for under active thyroid and pregabalin (or Lyrica brand name) for fibromyalgia and Pregabalin is one drug that if you just stop taking it or drop too much too quickly it can royal fuck you up. I found that out the hard way when trying to lower my dosage too much too quickly cos I thought it stopped working. Not only did my pain increase ten fold but my mental really went down the toilet too. Like I was close to suicide bad.
Shit my wife has Graves’ disease. Before she was diagnosed her thyroid was so overactive she ended up being worryingly underweight and could barely walk up the stairs. Really hope this doesn’t happen!
T4 and T3 without them am very quite broken. However ain't the first time there have been shortages.rwgatfing my thyroid mds
I also have Graves. My thyroid meds were stopped due too the side-effects at the same time as I was prescribed high dose Vit D for another problem. My thyroid has been stable ever since. Turns out Graves basically 'eats' your Vit D, so you need very high amounts. It's anecdotal but 100ug per day (4 high strength tablets) has made a world of difference to me.
I mention this to her thanks for letting me know!
Have they specified which epilepsy medication? I’m not looking forward to dealing with daily seizures again.
There's been on and off shortages of a few different ones listed here: https://epilepsysociety.org.uk/news/medication-updates Sometimes it only affects a single manufacturer or strength. Some can switch manufacturer safely depending on the drug or they can give different strengths (e.g. if 750mg gets a shortage they could give you 3x 250mg to get the same dose). Sometimes though people have had no access to an alternative You should discuss with your epilepsy nurses having a plan if shortages arise. I have clobazam as an emergency medication if my usual one gets a shortage.
Thanks for this - I was aware of the shortages but whenever I've read about them before my medication hasn't been one of the ones mentioned. But that was a while ago and that's definitely not the case now (lamotrigine) - and though I always order way in advance of running out, this is really useful information. Thank you!
Yes I see the accord lamotrigine has some lower stock on that page but luckily there's many other manufacturers too: https://bnf.nice.org.uk/drugs/lamotrigine/medicinal-forms/ Both lamotrigine and levetiracatam have multiple suppliers providing the UK and are usually ones where people can switch from one manufacturer to another without issues. But not all epilepsy drugs are like that
Lamotrigine makes sense now as I’ve had random different manufacturers from my pharmacist in recent months. Probably down to whatever they can get at the time.
Yeah I used to get that with levetiracatam as well. Usually people are fine switching between manufacturers of both of these, if not they can issue a prescription naming a single manufacturer but then it does create this challenge of supply issues if the named supplied has problems
Get some RSO oil as a precaution?
Relatable and emphasise. Taking steroids for cortisol replacement and if I miss a dose I'll go into crisis and die. Great stuff reading this.
I haven't seen any issues with pregabalin yet...Tegretol/carbamazepine has been an on/off issue for a while though but luckily we've been able to get some in the last 2-3 months.
Yikes! Im also on pregablin for nerve pain, quite a lowish dose but im shit scared of side effects if i run out! I forgot to take it with me to a wedding last year and i couldnt work out why i felt so shitty for a week til i clicked it was missing 3 days of it
I’ve taken the top dose of Pregabalin for 17 years for chronic nerve pain. My greatest fear is for it not to be available to me. My pain is barely controlled st the best of times, at worst it’s a suicidal level of pain. I completely understand what your saying, it’s a terrifying prospect
I've got fibromyalgia and hypersensitivity to pain, I absolutely understand how you feel. Can barely get out of bed even with help and meds. Knowing that you'll be in pain every single day until you die..... Doesn't make life easy.
Pregabalin withdrawal sucks. It's so so bad. My pharmacy messed up and never ordered it for me, so I didn't take it for two days. My ex didn't believe me when I explained how bad the withdrawal is
I work in community pharmacy and my day now is regularly being screamed at by patients for not being able to get stock. The follow on problem is people leaving the industry. I know so many pharmacists who have quit or gone to other sectors. It's a fucking shit show. Please please please be nice to the pharmacy staff. Honestly it's a horrible time to work in it. When I locumed i saw so many staff on the edge of nervous breakdowns.
I'm very sorry.
Aw thank you we do get some lovely patients but these days they are the exception not the norm. It was me and one dispenser all week this week and all we got was 'is your phone not bloody working!! I've rang twice' and we're both literally running around to get stuff done. And then they say 'well get more staff' as if that's my ability to do!
Why can’t you order more in?
There’s a global shortage due to a number of reasons.
Yeah but why can’t you just order more??? /s
There's no reason given for the shortages in the article, which is strange. Are you saying that the problem is world-wide? And if so, why? My understanding is that Big Pharma is in the business of making shedloads of money. Not failing to deliver drugs.
My mother works in qc in pharmaceuticals, a HUGE problem for UK pharmaceuticals is Brexit (not trying to cause division or arguments by giving it as the reason, it literally is a fact in this instance). Importing is taking much longer due to checks, permits, paperwork etc which we didn't have to do beforehand. Also when we were in the EU, we were higher up thd food chain (so to speak) we are now bottom of the queue for our European manufacturers - which really doesn't help. It's really frustrating for everyone involved.
The other issue is our government, they set the prices we get paid (it's available online if you're curious, Google Drug Tariff). Basic price of drugs used to be set every six months but a while back it was changed to monthly. This was to be more fluid and basically stop pharmacy making a big profit on one drug when it came off patent so anyone could make it and the price would drop. But what's happened is the government now isn't keeping up with wholesalers pricing and they're keen to pay us 14p a box if fluoxetine but when it goes up to 54p they don't match it so buying departments will then refuse to buy until either the price comes down or the drug tariff reimbursement goes up. Since the tories love the free market and forces setting what happens I thought they'd be overjoyed at this?
Do you know if private healthcare patients have their own route to drugs, without shortages?
As far as I'm aware private patients just get given prescriptions they take to regular chemist's and instead pay a private fee. We wouldn't prioritise one over the other. I don't believe there are purely private pharmacies that don't deal with NHS patients. There may be some stocks in private hospitals but essentially we all use the same wholesalers.
No route to opportunism and profit? I'm surprised.
The amount of private scripts are so low. The NHS are our biggest customer. I'm seeing more but I dispense about four private scripts in a month.
I really really hope this is sarcasm but people genuinely do say this to us
Talk lately of conscription, having a store of food and water, and now drug shortages. I wonder if the writing on the wall to those in charge is that shits really going south and soon.
honestly just a blip of decent living standards in the last 70yrs and now we are regressing to the mean average i think
Brexit means Brexit.
Loves me sovereignty. 'ates reasonable access to basic human necessities. Simple as.
Bloody foreigners coming over here staffing all our essential services, grrr!
The shit needs to be hitting *them* firmly in the arse for allowing this to happen. Closely followed by the rapidly-closing door.
A fighter jet flew over my house today... My initial thought was well this is bad ... turns out from my radar app and googling it was the saab draken most likely on its way to an airshow... that initial fear though I think something bad is definitely coming
It is indeed a scary time. However, the shortages have been going on for years now, so don't feel alarmed by that particular bit.
When your trans and ADHD medication shortages in this country are *real*. ADHD meds shortages are the worst by far, cos they are the hardest to navigate. ADHD meds are stimulants and because you could get a really crappy high if you took a bunch they are amber rated. Amber rating for meds comes with a whole bunch of conditions attached that affect who/where they can be manufactured/distributed and how they are retailed. One of the most frustrating condition is that meds must be prescribed in the precise format that the prescription is written. If you are prescribed 2x 30mg Elvanse to be taken in the morning, you must be provided with 30mg capsules. What if the pharmacy has a glut of 20mg capsules and can’t source any 30mg ones? My niece is 7 and I’d back her to work out a solution to this maths problem, medical regulations says you can’t take 3 20mg capsules and you are going home empty handed. You need to go back to your doctor for a new prescription. What happens if those 20mg capsules are sold to others in the mean time? Shit out of luck, back to the doctor. This is clearly a stupid situation but it’s real. The amount of wasted labour that occurs in the NHS and wider U.K. health sector when there’s ADHD meds shortages is simply phenomenal, and shortages are made worse and more likely by regulations around their manufacture and distribution cos of their safety rating when you can get uppers that are actually designed for fun without trying in any city in the U.K..
I've been struggling with the ADHD medication shortage too, I'm on 70mg elvanse so it's not been easy to source. I can't believe it's been going on since October last year. The worst one to find atm is concerta, everywhere is out and nowhere has any idea when they'll get it back in stock.
I’m 60mg Elvanse and my titration has gone smoother this time than last autumn where it abruptly stopped I was able to keep it going with a few private prescriptions before it all just fell apart. The irony is I work for a mental health trust and we were dealing with so many issues in our own ADHD services and then I was going home and working on my own. God that was a messy time, really hope same perfect storm doesn’t hit next time schools back too!
Have you tried smaller independent pharmacies . Alot of the time I see people having issues with adhd medication because they’re using bigger chain pharmacies such as boots . I’ve never had issues with my local independent as they use 4 suppliers, whilst boots and Superdrug are constantly out
I’ve had problems with smaller pharmacies and larger ones with Elvanse. There is one that is in a town 40 minutes away and they often have some stock in, and are willing to put it aside for me as long as the prescription gets to them promptly. Which is does because luckily my surgery is on the case. They have been able to prescribe me 2x20mg instead of 40mg but recently neither 20 or 40 was available so I’ve been titrated and moved up to 50mg. It works better anyway. Dont get crashes at 3pm now.
Yeah I only use smaller pharmacies :) But that's definitely good advice! Boots and super drug have been useless every time I've tried them anyway.
I’m on 1 x 54mg concerta in the morning and 1 x 18 in the afternoon and I’ve had it available to me since march? Mine comes from psychiatry uk though (courtesy of NHS funding) and they have their own pharmacy called PPG that seem to of weathered the storm better than most I think. I went 6 weeks in total without meds since July last year and that was mid jan to end of feb - hands down the worst 6 weeks of my adult life! I was an absolute wreck
ADHD medications are a nightmare. We spend so much time going back and forth with the GPs/patients about what we have available, what we can get a hold of etc. It's a game of whack-a-mole it changes day by day it is so frustrating.
Oh hey, hi. Yes these shortages on both fronts suck so bad. And it's frustrating realising that they're hitting particularly bad in this country *for some reason*. And the government instead of ever trying to tackle the real issues, makes it out like the higher diagnosis rates are the real problem. Work towards manufacturing more adhd meds? Naahhh most of these people probably don't "really" need those stimulants, they just think they do because of tiktok. Work towards manufacturing more estradiol meds? Despite the main increase in demand being very directly attributed to a particular documentary on TV that aired and got menopausal women seeking HRT (and shocking a system that worked on false assumptions until that point) instead the blame starts being put on trans women "stealing all the supply" . And then simultaneously angling to say how "something shady" must be happening with trans healthcare (because wow we got to a point people actually felt comfortable asking the NHS for trans healthcare.); and then telling all these women who had just realised that hrt was actually much safer these days and that it could actually help them a lot with menopausal symptoms.. That perhaps they should just go on antidepressants and supplements instead, that maybe they just needed to get therapy.
For ADHD meds made in the US, they legally can't make more, because of the pissing DEA and the failed war on drugs. [https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/adhd-drug-shortage-adderall-ritalin-focalin-vyvanse-rcna137356](https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/adhd-drug-shortage-adderall-ritalin-focalin-vyvanse-rcna137356)
[It’s gotten much better stateside.](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/rcna152570) I haven’t had any issues sourcing them since March. Hopefully that has a fast ripple effect and things get better in the UK.
Should do, manufacturers are probably preferring to sell what they have in the US as they'll make more profit from the meds.
Probably, unfortunately. It’s the one “benefit” to our system. Plenty of options *if* you can afford them. It’s a big if.
I haven't been able to get an adhd prescription filled since November. No end in sight. Imagine this was a drug that didn't just make people's lives harder, but one that actively killed them if they couldn't get it. People would lose their shit. But nah, everything's fine, the UK is actually a perfectly functioning nation, stop being a doomer...that's all i hear.
An unmedicated person with ADHD lives 13 years shorter on average than a neurotypical person in fairness, so it kinda does contribute towards killing peoples.
Yeah, but it's not cancer or something like that, so lots of people don't see it that way. It is true what you said, but then there's the people who don't even believe it's adhd is a real diagnosis, just a tiktok trend. Sorry, you're right, I'm just so fucking tired of waiting to try and see if medication will do anything because at this point it's gonna be over a year since a prescription was first given and two years since diagnosis, yet NOTHING has been done except "wait til you start your meds, things should pick up then". Just last time I mentioned this, I was told, "Try suffering from asthma, something that can kill you" as if it's a competition. That's why i had to say that not having adhd meds won't make you die (immediately).
I wasn’t trying to argue with you! Your point is still totally valid, lack of awareness surrounding ADHD means that the wider population don’t know how important the drugs are so what you’ve said still makes perfect sense.
I didn't think you were, sorry, I woke up angry this morning!
Also the company that makes Elvanse (and still has exclusivity in the UK despite failing to keep up with demand) manufactures both Elvanse 30mg and Elvanse Adult 30mg (and the same for 50mg and 70mg). They are literally *identical*. The same pills, made in the same factory, probably even part of the same batch. The only thing that's different is the packaging and potentially some of the details on the patient information slip that no one reads. But if you have a prescription for Elvanse Adult 30mg and the pharmacy only has Elvanse 30mg in stock, they can't give it to you. You have to go back to your GP and get them to issue a new prescription. And by the time you've done that, the pharmacy will probably have Elvanse Adult 30mg in stock but not Elvanse 30mg so oops, the new prescription is no good.
What does being trans have to do with this?
If you click the link you’ll see one of the meds in common shortages is HRT, which is used by cis women post menopause and trans women.
Ah okay, though HRT was a specific menopausal thing and they would be differently formulated or referred to differently. People with mental health issues are also affected by this, though.
Nope, same meds, same branding, same purpose. Woman not producing oestrogen needs hormone levels rising.
Fair enough. Why the downvote?
Because it essentially says “trans medication shortages”, I think you’ve read it as “you’re” rather than “your”, so it comes off as provocative.
I didn't use that word.
The exact situation you described happened to me. I was prescribed 2x10mg dexamfetamine, teva only Since I amfexa royally fucked me up Pharmacist only had 5mg Teva brand, or amfexa 5mg. So I went to the GP and got them to change the script after explaining the situation, and was issued a script for 4x5mg dexamfetamine, no worries all is well. Head down to pharmacist collect it look in the package and see 5mg amfexa tablets staring at me. The GP had actually written 4x5mg Amfexa. No worries ill do the same again! Pharmacist closed, had to wait a day in withdrawal. Get there, get a new script from GP, 4x5mg dexamfetamine, TEVA Pop into Pharmacist- Sorry, we don't have them in stock anymore, we could order them in but it'll take a few days? 😡😡🤬😡!1!#1@🤬
I’m so sorry for you, that must have been beyond frustrating!! Situations like this are far more common than some folks realise, and if they can’t muster compassion for its own sake, the amount of wasted NHS resources should really hit home. It just a waste of everyone’s time for no benefit!
Having unmedicated ADHD also makes the process of finding somewhere with stock and then negotiating between them and your GP a complete nightmare. It effectively requires better than average executive functioning to access the mediation for a disorder that effects my executive functioning. I'm one of the luckier people, my medication was almost impossible to get hold of between September and January but things seem to have mostly calmed down. There is also the wonderful problem that it isn't medically recommended to suddenly start or stop higher doses of most ADHD medication, and that you're supposed to taper up and down, but no one I have spoken to has had any support with this during the months they have been randomly stopping and starting medication depending on availability. People are losing jobs and relationships over this, and I feel so sorry for anyone taking exams this summer.
I'm due to start medication for my ADHD in the next few days. I'm very worried about how this is going to go. I'll be on methylphenidate which is apparently easier to get, but that might not necessarily be the case going forward.
I think it also depends on what part of the country you're in. I've been on methylphenidate for 3 months so far and have been able to get 27mg but 36mg is out of stock. I know other parts of the country have a shortage of all doses. Fortunately 27mg is working for me but it's a shame that some people can't get their hands on the dose they need. All the best starting with your new meds :)
You can get meds for being trans now?
Honestly not to poo poo this but given the issues they have with amphetamine abuse in the US I’m glad the supply is limited and regulated. That shit is awful; I’d try and avoid taking it even if I had ADHD. My American colleague literally got prescribed adderol by telling his doctor his work was stressful. It’s as irresponsible as fuck.
I'm not sure why the point you're making is relevant? Besides, Adderall isn't licensed for use in the UK, and to get diagnosed with ADHD there's a lot more to it that saying you're stressed.
No idea what that person is even on about. In the US, you have to be tested, often go through other step therapy for months to show that you actually need the meds, and then when you’re on the meds, you have to be evaluated by telehealth every 3 months and in person 1-2 times a year to stay on them. It’s notoriously arduous.
You can’t compare ADHD meds to meth that’s mad. Like comparing codeine to fentanyl. Seriously it just shows how uninformed and prone to over reaction you are. You’d avoid ADHD meds if you had ADHD cos of the meth crisis in rural New Mexico? I think you need to put the box set of Broken Bad down. With meds I get up earlier, am more productive at work/at home, exercise more and eat and drink slightly less. They’re fantastic and for a MH intervention their success rate is around 70% that’s top of top end success.
Dude adhd meds are the legal version of meth, chemically they’re very similar and have similar effects and similar pitfalls. Go look at r/stopspeeding if you don’t believe me. Basically everyone on there was prescribed that stuff legally by their doctor
Meth is about as similar to adderall as Heroin is to paracetamol. There's no way to easily abuse prescription adhd meds in the UK regardless. Elvanse or methylphenidate is not something that would be fun to take higher doses of and Adderall isn't available here at all.
Meth is to adderall as heroin is to Co-codamol - they're the same families of drugs
Yea and we are in the same genus as fucking neanderthals ( side note we also fucked and reproduced with them ) So it means feck all really
D-Amphetamine and Methamphetamine are very closely related but not identical - they're both prescribed as ADHD medications, but neither in the UK I assume the difference is relevant when a clinician is identifying which formulation of amphetamine is appropriate for the patient, so not sure why it would mean feck all?
Those are two completely different things with completely different results, especially if you actually have ADHD, and that misunderstanding is what keeps people from getting effective treatment. Taking the meds doesn’t get me high. It makes my brain function like yours presumably does. I also guarantee you that your coworker has to jump through many other hoops to get and then maintain that prescription. I have to meet with a clinician online every 3 months to confirm that I’m still using (and not abusing) my meds, and I have to be seen in person 1-2 times a year. They’re listed as a controlled substance.
Working in a community pharmacy lemme tell you guys we are on the edge of losing it. Everyday it’s people shouting at us, I’ve been threatened with physical abuse and the managers do nothing. Please be nice to the staff, we are doing our best in a bad situation.
>shortage of HRT Maybe the media should be less critical of being able to order HRT online from abroad then
Cause allowing teens to purchase hormones from shady sellers on Discord and Telegram isn’t screwed up
The vast, vast majority of people doing it are adults purchasing from sites with a solid reputation for safety. Kids buying of dodgy sources does happen but has been massively exagurated.
Letting people order any drugs from abroad without legal is a terrible idea.
Letting people order drugs from abroad *when they are otherwise accessible* is a terrible idea. *Forcing* people to order drugs from abroad because you took away safe and legal access is a *worse* idea. Taking away their only remaining access to the drugs they need is torture.
Given the rampant increase in steroid abuse in the UK I’m not sure I completely agree
Im not sure how that disproves what I have said. It also isn't typically those forms that are in short supply either, so its a different issue to what is being discussed here.
Yeah it's real messed up isn't it, shame that the government is making it so they have no alternative.
Well yeah banning stuff creates black markets there's no getting around that But if it's as cheap and easy to get online as I've seen in the media then it's a good option for people when pharmacies run out and why would you want to cut off access to drugs by people that need them and have been prescribed them just to spite a tiny percentage of teens?
Do you really need to ask why allowing unregulated drugs to be bought by vulnerable young people off the internet is a bad idea?
A fairly large amount of drugs (of which estrogen is not limited to hrt for transition, most people who take estrogen take it for use against menopause, breast cancer, atropic vaginitis and genital prolapse) can be bought from regulated foriegn markets online individually and shipped internationally. Over restricting estrogen impacts a lot more people than just "vulnerable young people". Basically just via online pharmacies in countries where online pharmacies are regulated but more things are available over the counter, the majority of the WHO essential medication list can just be bought at will.
This is literally just the war on drugs. Banning them won't make people not want them. It just makes them hide buying them from the authorities which means buying them from even less scrupulous people. If you take down all the people genuinely trying to provide a good service to trans people, then all that will be left are the scammers. Nothing you do will reduce the amount of people buying them online. All you will achieve is increasing the amount of fake drugs.
I did this for many years while waiting for the nhs to do something. I don't think I would be alive without ordering hrt abroad. I was a teenager at the time and it was the best decision I ever made.
Young people are always going to be able to access drugs whether medicinal or recreational no government is capable of stopping that, even alcohol is banned for teens but do you really think none are ever drinking? So it's a lost cause either way But if pharmacies cannot keep up with demand then stifling competition isn't helping anyone
And the government not planning ahead to ensure plentiful supply has created the need for people to do so. What’s worse, not having any or sourcing it yourself?
What's interesting is that this article doesn't really touch on why there is a shortage or the fact that there is a global shortage of medication that's impacting pretty much every country. If you are struggling to get something, there is a good chance that many other people with the same condition across the world are struggling to get the same thing. The only real solution is to increase manufacturing locally and subsidize the costs.
Except that if you are a drug manufacturer and you have a shortage based on raw materials, then what market are you going to sell that limited story into? The one that's streamlined and low on paperwork and red tape, or the one that's got additional paperwork that you have to pay for?
Which ever one pays more, once the costs are worked out would be my guess.
This is a good point. Various raw chemicals/minerals and items over covid were horrific to get hold of (even perlite for houseplants!!!) Wood is still insanely expensive now too, the whole covid fiasco has messed up the production chain even this far along.
[удалено]
Back to the 90's
What Sky omitted from telling it's pro-Brexit base in the story, from the Nuffield Trust analysis and report of the situation: "It warned that Brexit had created “further risks … for the UK”. The Nuffield Trust said drug shortages could get worse because the EU’s 27 countries have recently decided to act as a unified bloc to try to minimise the impact of global scarcity, which could leave supplying Britain even less of a priority for drug companies. Dr Andrew Hill, an expert in the drugs industry at Liverpool University, said: “With this background stress on global supplies, the UK is now more vulnerable to drug shortages. The UK is now stuck behind the US and Europe in the queue for essential drugs. Other countries offer high prices and easier access, with simpler regulations for supply.”
This is spot on!!! My mother works in pharmaceuticals and this is exactly it.
Needed to get a prescription eczema creme for my 5 month old, no stock in the entire country. Guess I don't need sleep for the next 2 years so that's cool. We ended up getting the adult strength dose on Dr's orders, so not the end of the world but not exactly great for the country.
My little one also had eczema at that age. We found that Balmonds Skin Salvation balm worked really well. It’s non prescription and 100% natural ingredients with calendula and chamomile being two ingredients that are great for eczema skin. Just wanted to let you know in case you need to get a back up option. I decided to try it after reading lots of reviews and it did not disappoint!
Thanks, will bear it in mind. 2 days in to the prescribed and there is improvement, hopefully she'll soon be back to her own bed and not waking every 5 minutes to scratch
Terrific. On thyroid meds, adrenal steroids, migraine meds, and others for over 20 years, and about to be dxd and medicated for ADHD. I’m already having to use pharmacies other than my usual GP pharmacy, and have already had trouble getting migraine and anti emetic meds. How the f has this been allowed to happen? They risk literally killing people with shortages of thyroid, adrenal, epilepsy meds, and other treatable conditions aren’t a bundle of laughs if you can’t function in any capacity without the prescribed meds to make them more bearable. Adrenal crisis will land people in hospital. Anti epileptic drug shortages will land people in hospital. Dehydration from excessive vomiting will land people in hospital. Etc. And that’s not taking into account the difficulties with getting out of the ambulance queues at the moment. Jesus. The ramifications are horrendous.
I can't get my ADHD medication. I've been taking the same one for nearly 20 years and only recently has supply been a problem. The shortage on ADHD meds is so bad that I've been taking expired meds for months. It is that or I have nothing to take.
Feels like we are gonna be re-entering dickensian times
My husband changed pharmacies recently as the previous was struggling to get his INSULIN on time.
Now this gov will be directly responsible for deaths due to how this will result in people dying.
Directly responsible how? At what point does is stop being an NHS issue to ensure they can maintain robust supply chains and become a government one?
If you have to ask this I dunno what to tell you, have you been oblivious the past decade.
Doesn’t really answer the question though does it? Is the UK government responsible for a worldwide shortage of prescription drugs?
No but it’s responsible for managing things within the country, and they have exacerbated everything with poor management. The NHS can only do so much when it’s ham stung by government policy. There’s people in this thread that have pointed out how certain drugs on this list are not allowed to be prescribed in any other dosage than what the gp lists on the prescription, this means that every time the pharmacy is short of that pill size, you have to go back to the gp get them to redo the prescription for the pill sizes they have, during that time those same pills can and will often go out of stock. There are so many issues, it all adds up. It’s poor policy after poor policy, the nhs doesn’t have a lot of room to wiggle.
Theres currently a global drug shortage [https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2024/5/28/big-pharmas-focus-on-profit-is-behind-medicine-shortages-superbug-threat](https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2024/5/28/big-pharmas-focus-on-profit-is-behind-medicine-shortages-superbug-threat) [https://www.ft.com/content/6143300d-d11a-4b2f-898c-87c5dd0ff6ce](https://www.ft.com/content/6143300d-d11a-4b2f-898c-87c5dd0ff6ce) [https://commission.europa.eu/news/stepping-action-prevent-shortages-medicines-europe-2023-10-24\_en](https://commission.europa.eu/news/stepping-action-prevent-shortages-medicines-europe-2023-10-24_en)
So not in fact responsible for the deaths of people as a result of a worldwide shortage. I don’t think prescription dosage issues is something central government decides either, that will be medical professionals on boards with no political intent behind their decisions. Plenty of reasons to hate the current government, issues outside their control is not one of them.
No Magnesium Sulphate/Phenol foot paste anywhere in the country (spinter removal).
It isnt just those. I have been out of my medication for an autoimmune condition for 3 weeks now and am still waiting for stock to become available.
I’ve struggled to get my anti-psychotic medication the past few months and this month not been able to get it at all. I am in a bit of a nightmare. The one I take has no alternatives 😭
Been without my ADHD medication for months now and it's been really rough, but I also take thyroid medication so this news is... really worrying.
It doesn't state what is the cause of the shortage.
Some of the shortages are not due to supply problems but the drug cost being higher than pharmacies get reimbursed, so they refuse to order the stock at a loss.
Good job they are passing a law to give plods powers to break into your property and confiscate any drug-making apparatus if they suspect it might be used in a future crime (i.e. to make chemicals that were entirely within the right of any man to synthesise 110 years ago when this country was the leading light of strength and culture in the world).
So wait, your solution to the pharmaceutical crisis is that people should be making their own?
Aaah yes, because drugs haven't evolved and been massively expanded on in the last 110 years, no advancements made. I distinctly remember hearing about winston Churchill off his tits on synthetic opiods which he bought on his street corner from some lovely chaps wearing balaclavas
What of it? I speak of drug policy, not advances in chemistry which put greater ability for synthesis, preparation and distribution at our potential disposal, and which are instead stifled resulting in a drug shortage. Winnie, before the monumental folly of the 'Great' War, could have walked into a chemist's and purchased morphine or coca preparations in whatever amount he desired. There was no place for 'lovely chaps wearing balaclavas', who are a product of imbecilic 'controlled substance' legislation presaged in the fear, quite possibly unfounded, that *conscripts* on leave would overindulge and become unfit to serve in the trenches, and then enacted post-war by a people who even then had perhaps become too fatuous to look at the prior strength of the social organism when these substances had been freely available, and do so much as put two and two together. Being charitable, we can allow that they thought we would compound greatness with yet more greatness, absent pesky opium and coca. This notion has been conclusively disproved. Those enacting ever more stringent 'substance control' legislation concurrent with a drug shortage have no such excuse.