Drug importers warn of drug shortages

Drug importers warn of drug shortages
"Trade restrictions and export bans [...] must be lifted."

 
Merzig - The drug importers warn of an intensification of drug shortages in Germany.

“The scarcity of individual medicines has already worsened significantly due to the partially closed borders within Europe, the purchase of hamsters by consumers and the overly generous prescription of doctors. And the list of scarce products is getting longer every day, ”said Jörg Geller, board member of the Association of Pharmaceutical Importers in Germany (VAD), the newspapers of the Funke media group (Wednesday editions). Due to the high demand, individual drugs are already being traded at higher prices than before the Corona crisis.

The VAD board called on EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (CDU) to quickly reopen the borders for goods traffic in Europe. “Trade restrictions and export bans for medicines must be lifted. Europe must stand together in solidarity in the crisis and not act selfishly on the basis of the nation state, ”Geller continued.

The German pharmaceutical manufacturers also see a worsening of the situation. "The prices of active ingredients and the logistics costs have risen significantly worldwide due to the failure of suppliers and means of transport," said the spokesman for the Federal Association of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers (BAH), Christof Weingärtner, the newspapers of the Funke media group. The import of active substances by air freight has increased tenfold in some cases.

There are also individual bottlenecks in ocean freight. In addition to raw materials and auxiliary materials, this also applies to the replenishment of protective clothing, masks and disinfectants. "As a result, the manufacturing costs of many pharmaceuticals have risen above the possible retail price," the BAH spokesman continued.

The pharmaceutical manufacturers are currently doing everything "to ensure that the supply of pharmaceuticals and medical devices is ensured despite increasing demand and under difficult conditions," said Weingärtner, referring to the results of a recent survey among the association members. The companies have expanded their capacities and are driving extra shifts - even on weekends.

"For a certain period of time, companies are confident that production will continue," the BAH spokesman continued. However, it depends on "how long the situation lasts".

In general, the drug shortages that have existed for years are due to the fact that, for cost reasons, several active ingredients and medicines are only produced by a few manufacturers in low-wage countries in Asia - such as India or China - and no longer in Europe. India has also already banned exports of several active pharmaceutical ingredients.

In 2019 alone, the number of registered delivery bottlenecks in Germany almost doubled to 18 million packages compared to the previous year (9.3 million), newspapers of the Funke media group citing the German Medicinal Products Institute.