Medicine shortages up by 20 per cent in a year
Medicine shortages in Belgium have increased by 20 per cent in a year, L’Echo reported on Saturday, based on figures from the Federal Agency for Medicines and Health Products (FAMHP).
In 2023, there were 3,596 medicines unavailable for an average of 54 days. That figure has been rising steadily for several years, with a 20 per cent rise from 2022 to 2023. In the past 30 days, 3.5 per cent of the total supply of drugs was temporarily unavailable or had their commercialisation interrupted or stopped.
Last year, 41 medicines were given “critical unavailability” status. This refers to products for which “no alternative exists and which are unavailable for more than one month”, according to the FAMHP. Among them is Ozempic, the diabetes medication also used for weight loss, which will have limited availability until at least the end of June.
For medicines not categorised as critically unavailable, the FAMHP says, alternatives, treatment modifications or stocks at wholesalers and pharmacies are normally sufficient to meet demand in case of short-term unavailability.
Reasons for the shortages include production delays, logistical problems or lack of active ingredients. A royal decree published at the end of January provides a legal framework to temporarily ban the export of certain essential medicines from Belgium.
File image © BELPRESS
Related news
