Adderall, among the most prescribed treatments for attention deficit disorder (ADD) or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), has been in limited supply throughout the country for most of the year. Unfortunately, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has warned that the situation could get worse in the coming months.
While there has been some improvement in availability, many people in the US are still unable to fill their prescriptions for the medicine and other ADHD drugs.
Due to the lack of transparency in the pharmaceutical sector, healthcare specialists told CNBC that it is exceedingly impossible to anticipate how much longer the shortages will endure. Some are worried about market circumstances when children who are typically afflicted by ADHD come back to school.
Scarcity Might Become Worse
Erin Fox, a pharmacist at the University of Utah and the leading expert on US drug shortages said she is concerned that the situation may deteriorate when the school year starts.
The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists released a list in June of more than 300 medications that are now in low supply throughout the US, including Adderall. Methylphenidate, sold under the trade names Ritalin and Concerta, is another option for Adderall on that list.
Because of their potential for misuse and severe psychological or physical dependency, the federal government controls how these drugs are produced, administered, and delivered.
Millions of people in the US rely on these medicines to help them focus, rein in their urges, and otherwise handle the stresses of school, job, or interpersonal interactions. In many cases, a diagnosis of ADHD made in childhood continues throughout adulthood.
As of 2016, the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) reported that 6 million children had been diagnosed with ADHD and that 60% of those cases were being treated with medication. Although 8 million individuals have been diagnosed with the illness, according to WebMD, only approximately a quarter of them are really receiving therapy.
Limited Information
Many kids and young people who take medication for ADHD do not take it during the summer. Because of this, demand may rise in the coming months beyond supply.
According to David Margraf, a pharmaceutical research scientist at the University of Minnesota's Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, there is no indication this year will be different in terms of the rise in prescriptions for ADHD drugs as the school semester begins.
An FDA shortages database shows that several manufacturers anticipate restocking certain ADHD drugs in August or September. But Margraf advised cautious optimism since drugmakers do not reveal how much stock they will hold by then.
That points to a more fundamental problem with the persistent scarcities. With so little information available from the pharmaceutical sector, it is difficult to predict when these problems will be solved or what can be done about them.
This is a major setback for patients, medical facilities, and the healthcare system as a whole.
