The serious shortage protocol (SSP) for 10mg tablets of fluoxetine has been extended again into the winter, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has said.  This will be the third time the SSP for this particular formulation of the drug has been extended, after it was initially placed under the protocol in September 2020.   The SSP will now end…
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The serious shortage protocol for fluoxetine 30mg capsules is finally coming to an end after a year and a half of serious supply issues.   Several formations of the antidepressant have been under serious shortage protocols since the mechanism – aimed to mitigate the impact of medicines drug shortages – was introduced in 2019.   Fluoxetine 30mg…
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Brexit negotiators must reach an agreement on the supply of medicines from the UK into Northern Ireland to prevent disruption and shortages for patients, the National Pharmacy Association (NPA) has said. Under the Northern Ireland Protocol, which forms part of the UK’s withdrawal from the EU, drugs and products made in the UK have to…
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Several pharmacy bodies have said the serious shortage protocol (SSP) does not go far enough to meet the demands of medicine shortages, and more solutions should be considered. The policy, which came into force in July 2019 in England, enables community pharmacists to supply a specified medicine in the place of another which is experiencing…
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Serious shortage protocols (SSP) for 30mg capsules and 10mg tablets of fluoxetine have been extended into the summer, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has said. This will be the second time 30mg capsules of the antidepressant have been placed under an SSP, and the third time the existing SSP has been extended…
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Six widely-used contraceptive pills will be out of stock until early next year, the Department of Health and Social Care has warned. In an alert issued to pharmacy contractors at the end of last month (November), the Government listed six oral contraceptives from three different manufacturers, which it said will be out of stock until…
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Pharmacy and GP bodies have called on the Government to give pharmacists the power to make minor changes to a prescription when a medicine is out of stock. In a letter to health secretary Matt Hancock, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, PSNC, and others asked the Government to amend medicines legislation to allow pharmacists to make…
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The Government must ensure contingency planning is in place to mitigate the impact of any worsening of stock shortages during the Covid-19 pandemic or a potential ‘second wave’, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has said. In its submission to the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on coronavirus, the RPS said that shortages have continued to…
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Pharmacy staff have been told to treat potential Covid-19 patients with pre-used facemasks. Public Health England (PHE) has published new guidance on the usage of personal protective equipment (PPE) when ‘in short supply’. The temporary guidance produced on Friday applies only for ‘urgent or emergency face-to-face contacts’ in a ‘health and social care setting’. Fluid…
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The National Pharmacy Association (NPA) has called for urgent action following the publication of a report revealing the extent of a Europe-wide medicine shortage problem.  Medicine shortages in community pharmacies are a growing problem across European countries as well as in the UK, The Pharmaceutical Group of the European Union (PGEU) Medicine Shortages Survey 2019…
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