What’s behind Australia’s drug shortages and what can you do about them?
Hundreds of medications are in short supply across Australia with patients unable to fill their scripts. See if you are affected. Search and see the list.
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Patients are struggling to fill their prescriptions in the face of hundreds of medication shortages across the country.
As of March, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) has more than 400 medications listed as experiencing shortages. That’s nearly double the number in March 2022 when there were 263 medication shortages.
What’s behind the shortfall and what can you do if you’re impacted?
WHAT DRUGS ARE IMPACTED?
Ongoing shortages include ADHD medication Concerta, hormone replacement therapy (HRT) patches and diabetes medication Ozempic. The TGA anticipates upcoming shortages of ADHD medication Ritalin.
In 2024, Australia also experienced shortages of ADHD drug Vyvanse and HIV prevention drug PrEP.
Former psychologist Jane McFadden said her own experience dealing with ADHD shortages has been “horrible” for her and her children.
Ms McFadden runs one of the top mental health podcasts in Australia, ADHD Mums, and said she had heard from tens of thousands of mothers who “are just desperate, driving all over the place trying to get medication for their children”.
“The support from the government is not really there with having basic medication available at a pharmacy,” she said.
Search and see the list below.
WHAT’S CAUSING MEDICATION SHORTAGES?
Pharmaceutical shortages in Australia are a complex beast, as each medication has numerous ingredients with their own supply and demand pressures.
Few drugs are produced in Australia due to the prohibitive production costs and comparatively small market. Australia only comprises about 1 per cent of the global pharmaceutical market which is dominated by the United States and western Europe.
Though Australia has a National Medical Stockpile for health emergencies, stockpiling critical drugs often isn’t a viable solution as expiry dates need to be closely managed.
Royal Australasian College of Physicians president Jennifer Martin said Australia is facing “critical medicine shortages” across the country.
“Australia imports 90 per cent of our medicines, making us highly susceptible to disruptions in supply,” she said.
“We need to invest in domestic manufacturing of medicines to ensure a stable and reliable supply of critical medications for Australian patients.”
In February, the TGA established the Medicine Supply Action Group, a forum to address ongoing medicine shortages. The group comprises stakeholders including the Pharmacy Guild and Australian Medical Association, and is yet to meet.
Dr Martin says the lack of Australian drug manufacturing, though part of a broader trend of offshore reliance, presents a “sovereign risk of not having the things we need when we need them”.
“At some level we’ve got to bite the bullet and appreciate it might not be as efficient economically or as cost-effective to manufacture [medicines] locally, we need to do this from a sovereign risk perspective.”
ADHD medications are in short supply globally due to manufacturing limits and increased demand. Despite differences in the drugs, shortages in one tend to impact others as patients with ADHD try to avoid being without medication.
The active ingredient in Vyvanse, lisdexamfetamine, is produced in the US. Its production quotas are tightly regulated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) due to its potential for abuse as a stimulant, and has not been increased despite high demand and calls from Australian healthcare groups.
HRT shortages are also global, with the TGA attributing the shortfall to “manufacturing issues and an unexpected increase in demand”.
Ozempic shortages are primarily driven by increased global demand for the drug which is only approved in Australia for the treatment of diabetes.
While Ozempic is approved for diabetes treatment, it has been prescribed for other purposes at a doctor’s discretion. The TGA has issued warnings regarding supply concerns related to this practice.
WHAT CAN I DO IF I AM IMPACTED?
Patients experiencing shortages should seek medical advice.
Patients may have alternative options available, as advised by their healthcare provider.
They may be able to switch to a similar drug that is in stock in Australia, and in some cases can use imported medicines.
Importation is not always a viable solution, as alternatives still need to be approved by the TGA. Drugs not registered in Australia can be approved for importation under section 19A of the Therapeutic Goods Act in place of registered medication with supply issues.
To account for the Concerta shortage, the TGA has approved the importation of overseas-produced Concerta tablets from Switzerland. Drugs approved under section 19A must be purchased at full price as they are not subsidised under the PBS.
A Pharmacy Guild spokesperson said “any medicine shortage is difficult to manage and can be frustrating for patients”.
“Community pharmacists will always work to discuss alternative options with patients so they can get the healthcare they need.”
Due to the shortage of HRT patches, the TGA has allowed pharmacists to dispense alternative brands or strengths of the hormone treatment. Patients undertaking the therapy may also be prescribed tablets and gels instead of patches, with three new gels added to the PBS from March.
Ms McFadden said she has heard from members of the ADHD community who have been prescribed other drugs to circumvent shortages, but that this is unsafe and creates further shortages.
“The doctors were all prescribing Concerta because Vyvanse wasn’t available, now all the people who have swapped to Concerta are in a shortage,” she said.
“Our children, people across Australia are just seesawing from one drug to another because nobody’s thinking this through at all.”
WHEN WILL AUSTRALIA’S MEDICATION SHORTAGES END?
The TGA has warned the Concerta shortage, which began in October 2024, is expected to continue until the end of the year due to manufacturing issues.
Shortages for HRT patches, depending on strength, are expected to resolve either in late June or December this year.
Ozempic shortages are also expected to stretch until the end of the year as global demand continues to rise.
TGA indications of shortage lengths are only estimates, and may be further lengthened by raw materials shortages, natural disasters, panic-buying or stockpiling. The TGA considers a shortage to be resolved when a quantity of the drug arrives onshore, but these medicines can take time to filter through the Australian supply chain to consumers.
WILL TRUMP’S TARIFFS IMPACT THE AVAILABILITY OF MEDICATIONS?
US pharmaceutical representatives have lobbied US President Donald Trump to target Australia with drug tariffs due to the “damaging pricing policies” of subsidised medicines on the PBS.
“Egregious and discriminatory pricing policies in several markets, including Canada, Japan and Korea, continue to undervalue American innovation, threaten billions of dollars in lost sales and put American competitiveness, jobs and exports at risk,” said the submission from the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America.
Labor has made a pre-election commitment to reducing the maximum price of filling a script to $25, with the Coalition matching the cheaper medicine policy.
Tariffs are imposed on imports rather than exports, so tariffs from the US are unlikely to impact the prices of American drugs imported to Australia.
The majority of drugs imported to Australia are not from the US, but are instead sourced from cheaper markets including India and China.
Originally published as What’s behind Australia’s drug shortages and what can you do about them?
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