We’ve read many articles from across the media about the ADHD drug shortage in recent weeks……
💊 England has seen a sharp rise in the use of ADHD drugs, increasing by 11% per year between 2010 and 2019. This significant rise in reliance on drugs, coupled with drug shortages, has left a staggering 97% of people with ADHD in the UK affected by the shortages according to the Medical Express.
💊 The British Medical Journal reports that GPs have been advised not to start new patients on several drugs for treating ADHD that are in short supply in the UK.
💊 Last month the BBC investigated the claim that the ADHD drugs shortage is fuelling the online black market. They found drugs used to treat ADHD are being openly traded in “potentially lethal” doses to UK buyers on encrypted apps.
An increase in global demand due to a rapid rise in the number of ADHD diagnoses, manufacturing issues and delays in distribution are the main reasons for the shortages, say the DHSC. But, what about profitability? Is the market still attractive and generating enough profit for manufacturers to encourage them to compete?
Charles Joynson, WaveData MD, investigates the long term price trends of Methylphenidate Tabs 10mg 30s. The average market prices of this commonly used ADHD product has declined fairly steadily over the last 10 years until it reached a point in late 2022 when prices fell to a low of £2.37 and remained more or less at this price between July and November. Then prices started to rise consistently month on month between December 2022 and May 2023.
In December 2022 the first concession was announced at £4.88. Since then there have been 13 concessions, and although the price has fallen, it doesn’t seem to have fixed the problem.
The issue may be that the manufacturer profitability has been falling steadily since 2014, and it just reached a point in 2022 when manufacturers simply couldn’t make money out of this product anymore, that and manufacturing withdrawal could be the reason for the shortage.