Reports: Adderall shortage worsening
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — New data shows, after an announcement from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced mid-October 2022, that an Adderall shortage developed.
The shortage is worsening with no end in sight, according to news reports and medical experts.
CNN Tuesday reported the shortage affects 1 in every 10 people in the United States who uses Adderrall or “similar combination drugs to treat attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.”
However, the scope of the issue doesn’t end there. Medscape reported the list of stimulant medications that are suffering shortages included Focalin, Ritalin and Vyvanse, among others. Medscape, according to its website, “is the leading online global destination for physicians and healthcare professionals worldwide, offering the latest medical news and expert perspectives.”
It also offered information on drug and disease information, it said.
The shortage of medications to treat attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder affects about 10 million adults and 6 million kids in the United States, according to Medscape, which is said is an issue made more complicated for those living in rural or underserved communities which may have limited access to pharmacies.
CNN on Tuesday, citing data from the health data platform Truveta, reported that the “prescription fill rate” for amphetamine and dextroamphetamine, two medications used to treat ADHD, fell from nearly 49% in October 2022, when the FDA announced the shortage, to less than 41% in February 2023, which it said was a low.
The numbers showed no signs of improving though the end of 2023, according to CNN.
Medscape said the blame for the shortage is being lobbied by manufacturers and federal agencies, blaming each other for rising demand.
Clinicians said that insurers, drug distributors, and “middlemen” were playing a role in “keeping medications out of patients’ hands,” the website said.