The next few weeks could be extremely busy for pharmaceutical packaging companies to boost the supply of common medicines to UK pharmacies, after it was revealed many patients are struggling to get hold of the drugs they need.
According to a BBC report, there are 80 medicines that are in extreme short supply in England, leading the Department of Health to pay a premium to attain more of them.
This is a significant increase from 45 on the ‘shortage of supply list’ in October 2018, resulting in many patients struggling to find drugs, such as painkillers and anti-depressants, when they need them.
A spokesperson from the Royal Pharmaceutical Society told the news provider that there was “a massive shortage and prices spikes”, leading to this problem in pharmacies.
This issue could worsen following Brexit on March 29th if no deal is reached regarding the transportation of medicines from Europe.
A letter from the NHS to pharmacists, which was revealed to the Guardian, stated plans have been put in place for some medicines to be prioritised and alternative transports routes to be used in this situation.
The letter stated: “In the event of a ‘no-deal’ scenario to this additional transport capacity and prioritisation includes prescription-only medicines and pharmacy medicines, general sales list medicines and unlicensed medicines, including specials and investigational medicinal products used in clinical trials and vaccines.”
Despite the threat of even greater drug shortages after Brexit, NHS England’s chief pharmaceutical officer Dr Keith Ridge advised pharmacies and individuals not to stockpile pills, as this can “risk additional pressure on the availability of medicines” for others around the UK.