I mean, I know we don't want to go too deep into it, but just on the basic level, what is this drug and what is it doing?Īnthony: So at the highest level, you know, when we talk about our stimulants, things like Adderall and methylphenidates, like your genetic Ritalin, they are affecting downstream certain neurotransmitters, specifically norepinephrine and dopamine. Interviewer: So why don't we go little bit into these ADHD medications and what exactly are they doing for a patient. But we were kind of also hoping this would be resolved by now. I have also heard that, you know, May, June-ish, we can see supply come back a little bit. Interviewer: You don't have answers either. Interviewer: You're not keeping a secret from us. We want to be transparent with our patients on what to know, but sometimes we don't have all the answers ourselves. We're seeing dates that come in there as an update, and many times those get pushed back.Īnthony: So it is a little challenging. So for the pharmacists and people on the front lines, sometimes we don't even have all the information. That has since resolved, but we still haven't seen supply come back the way we had hoped. So Teva is one of the largest manufacturers of generic Adderall, that there was staffing issues at their biggest manufacturing plant. So as this has played out, you know, there's a couple different things. Manufacturers aren't required to disclose like what's causing the shortages. So I guess what kind of delays are we seeing? I mean, I went to fill one last week because I'm taking some of these medications, and they told me not to expect anything till July.Īnthony: Yeah. So as you can see, kind of the perfect storm of factors leading us to where we are today. So as you can imagine, access to these medications increased. So some of the things that came into play with COVID, the public health emergency allowed for telehealth prescribing of these stimulants, which previously required an in-person visit. So that, you know, limited supply coupled with an increased demand during the COVID period have really drained our normal channels or put strain on them, resulting in what we are dealing with today, where some of these more utilized formulations are just not available at the local pharmacy level. So a couple things that come into play here.Ī lot of these stimulant medications are controlled substances, and the DEA kind of sets limits on manufacturing of these. The stimulant one is a little unique in that there's a multitude of factors impacting this. We always have in pharmacy, but the COVID and the supply chain disruption has certainly exacerbated it a little bit. Now, Anthony, what exactly causes prescription shortages, and what's going on right now? Contributing Factors of the Adderall ShortageĪnthony: We've been dealing with a lot of shortage issues. He is the Pharmacy Director at Huntsman Mental Health Institute. To discuss what a patient can expect if they are unable to find a medication and what options they have available to them, we're joined by Anthony May. For the neurodivergent patients that may rely on this medication to function, there is concern about what they are supposed to do if they cannot get their prescription filled. ADHD patients with prescriptions are experiencing intermittent delays in being able to access their medications. And while a few drug manufacturers have recently issued statements that they are no longer experiencing shortages of manufacturing issues, in spring of 2023 many of the 45 million U.S. Interviewer: In October of 2022, the FDA announced a potential shortage of ADHD medications in the United States, most notably the drug known as Adderall and its generics.
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