When I tried to pick up the medicine at the pharmacy window, "the medicine is in short supply..." and "shipment adjustment is in progress...".
This situation has been going on for over a year now.
Triggered by frauds by generic drug manufacturers that have been discovered one after another since the year before, there has been an unprecedented supply shortage of pharmaceuticals, and according to an industry group announcement on the 5th, nearly 30% of all pharmaceuticals.
What drugs will be in short supply and how long will it last?
It has been compiled in detail through interviews with experts.
What medicines are in short supply?
As of the end of August, the "Japan Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers' Associations", which is made up of pharmaceutical companies, conducted a survey on the supply status of ethical drugs as of the end of August, and received responses from 223 companies.
As a result, out of the 15,036 items surveyed, 4,234 items, or 28.2% of the total, had shipment suspensions or shipment adjustments, an increase of 7.8 points from last year.
The breakdown is: ▽ “Generic drugs” 41%, 11.6 points ↑ (29.4% last year) ▽ “Branded drugs” 6.4%, 2 points ↑ (4.4% last year) ▽ “Other drugs” 11.9%, 6.8 points ↑ (5.1% last year) ).
In addition, the Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers' Associations of Japan regularly requests pharmaceutical companies to report on the status of drug sales and supply, and publishes the results on its website.
According to this, the drugs that are difficult to obtain as of the end of August are ▽ atopy, urticaria, hypertension, angina pectoris, rheumatism, depression, bronchitis drugs, etc. In addition, antipyretic analgesics. It also contains cold medicine.
Why did the supply shortage happen in the first place?
The impetus was the fraud of Kobayashi Kako, a generic drug manufacturer in Fukui Prefecture, which was discovered at the end of 2020.
Over 240 people across the country suffered from health hazards when medicines for treating fungal diseases such as athlete's foot were contaminated with ingredients of sleeping pills. The vicious reality, such as continuing to cover up
In response to the situation that completely overthrew the trust in pharmaceuticals, inspections were strengthened, such as on-site inspections without prior notice by prefectures nationwide, and voluntary inspections were also conducted by manufacturers.
Under these circumstances, problems in the manufacturing process were found in manufacturers around the country, including one of the three major generics companies, "Nichi-Iko" (Toyama). Shipments of various types of pharmaceuticals stopped one after another.
Why is the impact on supply worse than last year?
When interviewed by the Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers' Associations of Japan and experts, it has been pointed out that this is related to a series of administrative actions such as business suspension orders for pharmaceutical companies.
Since the Kobayashi processing problem was discovered, 13 companies nationwide have been disposed of, eight last year and five so far this year.
In September, a business improvement order was issued to a manufacturer in Ishikawa Prefecture, and in November, a business suspension order was issued to a manufacturer in Toyama Prefecture.
Naokazu Tsuchiya, chairman of the stability assurance committee of the Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers' Associations of Japan, said at a press conference, ``The reason for the increase is not the fact that the number of drugs that have been unable to ship due to administrative measures has increased even more than last year. I would like to take measures to improve it as soon as possible."
We asked Professor Hiroyuki Sakamaki of Kanagawa Prefectural University of Health and Welfare Graduate School, who is familiar with pharmaceutical issues, about his views on this point.
(Professor Hiroyuki Sakamaki)
“I am both surprised and angry at the worsening supply situation. I wonder if the overall shipment status has been delayed.”
As for the reason why shipment adjustments are spreading to other manufacturers.
“By receiving an administrative sanction, the company’s drugs will no longer be shipped, but the need for medical care as a whole will not change, so other companies will bear the burden of that. Even if your company is inundated with orders, you may not be able to respond immediately even if your company is inundated with orders. This is what is happening now.”
How does the pharmacy handle it?
Pharmacies across the country are struggling to cope with the ongoing shortage of necessary medicines.
At "Oda Pharmacy" in Nishi-Tokyo City, Tokyo, which is visited by more than 100 people a day, mainly locals, many medicines, mainly oral medicines, have been sold since manufacturing problems and frauds by pharmaceutical manufacturers were discovered one after another. The situation continues to be inadequate.
I interviewed pharmacist Keiichiro Ono just one year ago in December last year about the shortage of medicines, but this time I interviewed him again about what has happened since then.
(Pharmacist Keiichiro Ono)
"I feel like it's getting worse little by little."
Mr. Ono's pharmacy handles about 1,700 items of medicine, but now about 300 items, about 100 items more than last year, are enough. It means that the patient may have no choice but to refer to other pharmacies that have it in stock.
In addition, the supply of so-called "cold medicine" at this pharmacy continues to be unstable due to the influence of the adjustment of the shipment volume of the antipyretic analgesic "Caronal", which has increased in demand due to the spread of the new corona infection. It means that
Until now, pharmacies used to manage the inventory of medicines on a computer system and automatically place an order when the inventory was low. It means that the number and timing of orders are determined by predicting drug demand.
(Pharmacist Keiichiro Ono)
“In the past, it took me about half a day to get the medicine I ordered from a wholesaler, but now I have to wait a week or two to get it. It's hard to manage the inventory of medicines.I think it's stressful for patients, so I really hope that the situation will return to the way it was before."
when will it be canceled?
Hiroyuki Sakamaki, a professor at the Graduate School of Kanagawa University of Health and Welfare, who is familiar with pharmaceutical issues, predicts that it will take two to three years.
"In order to improve the manufacturing procedures of companies that had problems, the government will have to cooperate, and considering the capacity of Japan's drug manufacturing, it will take another two years, or three years at the longest. In the meantime, medical professionals and patients will feel uneasy, so pharmaceutical companies need to be fully aware of this and act quickly.In addition, there are various risks to the stable supply of pharmaceuticals in the future. It is necessary to analyze in advance and think about what kind of countermeasures should be taken.I think it is important to have a common recognition that we are in such an era.”