Antibiotics, cough syrups and blood pressure tablets among 239 out-of-stock medications

The list of out-of stock medications also includes Ezetimibe for high blood cholesterol, Lercanidipine for treating high blood pressure, and two types of Solpadeine tablets. File picture: Pexels

Antibiotics, cough syrups and blood pressure tablets are among 239 medications currently out of stock in the country, with drug shortages rising 34% since October.

The shortages are of 13 medicines described as “critical” by the World Health Organisation, including amoxicillin antibiotics of which 11 types are now unavailable here. Six types of Benylin cough syrup are out of stock due to an unexpected increase in demand according to the health regulator.

The list also includes Ezetimibe for high blood cholesterol, Lercanidipine for treating high blood pressure, and two types of Solpadeine tablets.

Analysis of the shortages by industry expert Sandra Gannon found 36% of out-of-stock medicines have just one supplier into Ireland, an imbalance greater than across the EU where this stands at 25%.

“Supply chain weakness highlights the need to revisit the pricing framework” she said. Ms Gannon, CEO at Azure Pharmaceuticals, said that increasing the cost of medications here would protect supply.

“We’re seeing shortages emerging for nasal sprays, in part because of increased demand, but also due to supply issues that are slowly emerging down the chain from manufacturing sites on the other side of the world,” she said.

“There are similar issues with prescription skin treatments, eye drops and creams, many of which come from a single supply source and are reimbursed at such low prices that other suppliers are unwilling to enter such a small market as Ireland.” 

She pointed to a recent decision in Portugal where cheap medicines were increased in price by 5% among other measures. 

She said:

The goal of raising prices is to facilitate access to medicines and avoid situations of stocks running out.

On Thursday, European and Irish pharmaceutical experts, including Irish Pharmacy Union president and Cloyne-based pharmacist Dermot Twomey, will discuss the shortages in Dublin.

Lead author of a recent European Commission report on medicine shortages, Thyra de Jongh, said: “The issue is caused by many factors in the chain, such as shortages in raw materials, transport costs going up, geopolitical factors such as the war in Ukraine, and a surge in demand for certain medicines due to intensive seasonal epidemics.” 

The Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA) which monitors medicines has previously said patients should seek alternatives to unavailable products.