A Deeper Look at Drug Shortages in the U.S.

Drug shortages can occur for a number of reasons. The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) lists the most common as changes in clinical practices, inventory practices of wholesalers and pharmacies, raw material shortages, changes in hospital and pharmacy contractual relationships with suppliers and wholesalers, natural disasters, and manufacturing issues. Brexit in the UK and European Union have caused pharmaceutical companies that supply drugs there to stockpile drugs in order to guarantee inventories. But the U.S. doesn’t have that excuse.
Recently, in the U.S., there has been a shortage of an anti-anxiety drug, buspirone. The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) lists shortages, and as of Jan. 31, 2019, noted shortages of buspirone tablets manufactured by Accord Healthcare, Mylan and Teva Pharmaceutical, and that the companies “did not provide a reason for the shortage.” Accords were on back order with an estimated release date of late-March 2019. Mylan said theirs were also on back order and estimated release date of late-January to early-March, although for some dosages they had no estimated release date. Teva also suggested release dates of early- to mid-February or early-March for some dosages.