Are drug shortages possible this winter? 4,000 drugs affected

The president of the Union of Community Pharmacists' Unions warns of the risk of the breakage or risk of breakage of "nearly 4,000 medicines". Antibiotics and antidiabetics are part of the list.

France could be faced with a new shortage of medicines this winter. The president of the Union of Community Pharmacists' Unions (USPO), Pierre-Olivier Variot, alerted, Thursday October 26 on franceinfo, about shortages or risks of shortages of stocks which would concern "nearly 4,000 medications". He specifies that some breakups will only last a month or two, but that others will be long-term “and there, “it becomes dramatic.” Among the drugs concerned, we find amoxicillin and cortisone. The shortage will also concern “anti-cancer drugs, anti-hypertensives, analgesics, anti-diabetics”, notes Pierre-Olivier Variot.

“Disparities in 39;access to pharmacies"

The National Security Agency The use of medicines (ANSM) already prevented à the end of August on the 3,500 reports of shortage or risk of shortage of medicines. According to the ANSM, pharmacies were at low cost. just-in-time, from October 18, on many medications often prescribed in winter. The agency's general director, Christelle Ratignier-Carbonneil, talks about “disparities in access at the pharmacy level”. on some molecules such as amoxicillin, on franceinfo on October 4. A shared observation by the Minister of Health, Aurélien Rousseau, who deplores the  over-stocks" of certain  big pharmacies", on France Inter. Christelle Ratignier-Carbonneil nevertheless qualifies the concerns by recalling that “if we focus on the molecules that we use during winter pathologies, (…) we are in situations where stocks are there, at industrial level. Salbutamol was in fact the only winter medicine with a smaller stock than normal during the ANSM census on October 18.

What measures are taken to compensate for disruptions?

The Minister of Health announced "the decision to give back to those who distribute responsibility that all pharmacies, including the smallest, have access to these stocks”. The ANSM has also published a winter epidemic preparedness plan, commissioned by by the government. According to franceinfo, the agency may decide to "import medicines, limit exports to abroad of molecules produced in France, or even abroad. authorize masterful preparations. Hospital pharmacies could also be affected by this measure, said Dr. Aurélien Rousseau in Les Échos. He also announced, in August, a 10% increase in the price of amoxicillin against the assurance of manufacturers to hold the necessary stocks. On France Inter, the minister spoke of the relocation "to France of the production of 25 strategic medicines" which would limit shortages. He also indicated that the government was working to improve the situation. better availability of "450 essential medicines".

Last winter, France already had experienced supply issues where certain medications such as amoxicillin and paracetamol had sometimes long outages. More than 3,700 medicines were affected by shortages and risks of rupture in 2022. In order to limit the risks this year, the government has also launched a double vaccination campaign against Covid-19 and flu, at the end of October.