Never earlier person determination been truthful galore medicine shortages successful 1 twelvemonth arsenic successful 2022, said the president of the pharmacists' enactment KNMP, Aris Prins, connected the TV programme KASSA connected Saturday evening. Last year, a cause was unavailable for astatine slightest 2 weeks astir 1,514 times.
On average, a shortage lasted 91 days past year, Prins told KASSA. In addition, 10 percent of medicines disappeared from the marketplace altogether. Furthermore, determination were 1007 cause shortages successful 2021.
The Pharmacists Association refers to a shortage erstwhile a cause is unavailable nationwide for astatine slightest 2 weeks. Within a year, determination tin besides beryllium respective shortages of a drug. If the shortage is resolved, but the cause is again unavailable for an extended play a fewer months later, they are counted separately, a KNMP spokesperson explained.
Starting this year, wholesalers are required to support an exigency banal of medicines, the spokesperson said. This measurement could perchance offset immoderate of the shortages, according to pharmacists.
In effect to the figures connected medicine shortages KNMP announced, Health Minister Ernst Kuipers wants to see each imaginable solutions to amended signifier the availability of medicines for patients. The Ministry of Public Health (VWS) is not lone looking astatine measures that the Netherlands itself tin instrumentality to combat the shortage of medicines, but besides stresses that it is precise important to enactment unneurotic arsenic Europe.
"Shortages are a planetary occupation and tin truly lone beryllium decently addressed astatine the planetary level," a spokesperson for the Ministry of Health said. As an illustration of specified an EU approach, the spokesperson cited the accumulation capableness of vaccines for Europe, which is already reserved for a imaginable adjacent pandemic.
On Saturday, the ministry was not yet alert of the figures presented by KNMP, arsenic they were not published until the tv broadcast. However, the VWS has been moving for immoderate clip connected measures to debar shortages arsenic overmuch arsenic possible. For example, since Jan. 1, wholesalers and selling authorization holders of medicines person been required to support an "iron stock" of 2 and a fractional months, the ministry spokesperson sated
In addition, the ministry is holding talks with wholesalers, pharmacists, pharmacists and wellness insurers "to spot however we tin determination forward," according to a spokesperson. Kuipers besides wants to sermon imaginable improvements to the penchant argumentation and the relation of purchasing policies of wellness insurers, wholesalers and pharmacists.
Recently, cause shaper InnoGenerics went bankrupt. According to the Ministry of Health, it cannot beryllium ruled retired that the bankruptcy volition pb to shortages of immoderate drugs successful the coming months.
InnoGenerics manufactured drugs successful tablet form, including drugs for gout, depression, cardiovascular disease, epilepsy and diabetes. The institution volition yet adjacent its doors adjacent week.
However, bankruptcy is besides a origin for interest astatine KNMP. Shortages tin usually beryllium made up, for illustration by sourcing drugs from abroad, the spokesperson said. But patients whitethorn past person to instrumentality a antithetic medicine for their ailments than they usually get, which they often find inconvenient, pharmacists observed.
Overall, the shortage of medicines is the effect of problems with accumulation and distribution. KNMP, however, wants the state to go little babelike connected medicines from abroad. "This makes america precise vulnerable," the spokesperson claimed.
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