Aotearoa less affected by medicine supply issues countries

Tāmaki Makaurau - Pharmac’s efforts with suppliers means Aotearoa has been less affected by ongoing supply disruptions than other countries.

Currently there are 47 medicine supply issues notified out of over 1000 funded medicines for Kiwis and Pharmac says it is working hard behind the scenes to ensure any impacts to New Zealanders and the health sector are minimised.

Most issues will not be noticed by the public or cause significant disruption because alternatives are secured and made available. In comparison, Australia currently lists 321 medicine shortages, of which 47 are critical.

The covid pandemic has been an unprecedented challenge for global medicine and devices supply chains. Increased demand, interruption of manufacturing processes, and disruptions to international and local distribution activities caused by millions of people being unwell have all contributed to these issues.

Recent medicine supply issues, though mostly short-term, have affected fairly large groups of people in Aotearoa.

They include quinapril with hydrochlorothiazide (branded as Accuretic), a blood pressure medication, and lorazepam (branded as Ativan), a medicine for anxiety and sleep issues.

There has also been disruptions with long-term consequences, such as oestradiol (branded as Estradot) a hormone replacement therapy, where an increase in demand and historic manufacturing challenges have resulted in many people being unable to fill their prescriptions.

Supply issues can occur for a variety of reasons, such as shipping or other distribution disruptions, an increase in demand, manufacturing quality problems or product discontinuation.

An example of how Te Pātaka Whaioranga-Pharmac works to keep medicine stocks available in the country was the worldwide shortage of the colourless dye radiographers use to improve visibility in X-rays.

Countries like Australia and the U.S got down to one week supply after a factory closure, but Pharmac's single-supplier contract requires two months of usual national demand to be held in the country and the obligations to maintain supply meant our orders made it to the front of the queue. This meant that Aotearoa was unaffected by the worldwide shortage.

Pharmac says it knows it can be tough, with everyone facing disruptions due to the supply chain. It’s especially difficult when it is unexpected, and everyone has done all they can to mitigate the situation.