Obama acts to reduce prescription-drug shortages

[HuckleB]

Source: USA Today

President Obama signed an executive order instructing the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to take actions to help reduce prescription-drug shortages.

There have been more than 200 prescription-drug shortages reported so far this year, the FDA says. The most common shortages have involved cancer drugs, anesthetics used for patients undergoing surgery, as well as drugs for emergency medicine and electrolytes needed for patients on IV feeding.

"We have also seen shortages of injectable drugs used for blood pressure and shortages involving Adderall extended-release capsules used for treating attention deficit hyperactivity disorder," FDA spokeswoman Shelly Burgess said.

Doctors, hospitals, pharmacists and patients are struggling with the problem that has caused them to delay treatment, postpone surgery or make do with costlier and less-effective substitutes. Fifteen deaths have been blamed on shortages.

Read more: http://yourlife.usatoday.com/health/healthcare/story/2011-11-01/Obama-acts-to-reduce-prescription-drug-shortages/51023354/1

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Well, I'm going with hope, and hoping this is good news.

:hi:

[louis-t]

1. Do you think drug companies do this to drive the price up?

Wouldn't put it past them. They'll blame "too many regulations".

[HuckleB]

5. It appears to have multiple causes, but there are many players, none of whom are "clean."

http://aspe.hhs.gov/sp/reports/2011/drugshortages/ib.shtml

[Poll_Blind]

2. I was checking out this executive order a couple of days ago. It's a bit of a mixed bag. There's..

...a bit in http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/10/31/executive-order-reducing-prescription-drug-shortages">Section 3 about expediting regulatory reviews which makes me wonder if the already-sloppy FDA is going to do a better job in a hurry than it does when going through its normal process.

PB

[Shagbark Hickory]

3. Mixed bag? That's impossible.

:sarcasm:

[HuckleB]

6. It will be interesting to see what the details are.

[cyberpj]

4. Good. Now if someone would PLEASE address the PRICE GOUGING.

Just one person's history:

I have a drug for M.S. that cost around $1,000/month (12,000/year) back in 1996 --when they said the cost was high so they could recoup their research costs.

At the beginning of this year, my "discounted" 90-day mail-in prescription program was charging over $3,000/month ($36,000/year)
and just now the most current order showed a cost of $3,500/month ($42,000/year) !!!

When they keep saying the cost of medical coverage is going up and up and up --- have no doubt that price gouging is a HUGE part of it! If a person has insurance coverage the corporation feels free to charge more, then my insurance cost goes up, then they charge more, then my insurance cost goes up, then they.... well, you get the drift.

Otherwise, how does a med go from lottery-drawing scarcity to mass production status (probably in another country by now) and still triple in cost some 14 years later?