Italy Faces Widespread Drug Shortages, Disrupting Patient Care
Italy is grappling with a significant shortage of essential medications, impacting patients across the country and raising concerns about access to critical treatments. Over 4,000 drugs are currently listed as lacking, according to the Italian drug agency, AIFA, ranging from life-saving anticoagulants and HIV therapies to common antibiotics and cancer medications.
The crisis, which is particularly acute during the summer months, stems from a complex interplay of factors including global supply chain issues, manufacturing delays, and export restrictions. The AIFA maintains a detailed list categorizing the shortages – encompassing drugs with no available substitutes, those with equivalent alternatives, and those subject to export blocks or awaiting import authorization. “The lists are long, indeed,” one official stated, highlighting the sheer scale of the problem.
Rather than focusing on brand names, experts emphasize the importance of tracking active ingredients – the core molecules within each drug – to understand the full extent of the deficiencies. Often, shortages are limited to specific dosages or pharmaceutical forms. For example, a patient may find a 10mg tablet unavailable, but be able to manage with a 20mg tablet split in half, though this is not always an ideal solution.
The impact is particularly felt in hospital pharmacies, which dispense medications for complex and delicate therapies. In the Lazio region, a shortage of drugs used in HIV treatment – including those for preventative therapy (PrEP), post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), and ongoing care for HIV-positive individuals – has forced the Umberto I hospital to reduce patient packs from two to one, at least until a new delivery arrives on August 19th. Spallanzani Hospital, however, has not reported the same deficiency. AIFA has activated a contingency protocol to ensure patients do not run out of medication while awaiting resupply, with the goal of guaranteeing continued care for all. Similar issues are emerging with drugs for pulmonary arterial hypertension and anticoagulants.
While many shortages can be addressed with generic or equivalent medications, this requires a physician to rewrite prescriptions. This process is often complicated during the summer months when family doctors are on vacation and replacement physicians may be hesitant to assume responsibility for altering established treatment plans. For many patients, this translates to long waits at hospital pharmacies to collect their monthly supply, a situation exacerbated by the current shortages.
The situation underscores the fragility of the pharmaceutical supply chain and the urgent need for proactive measures to prevent future disruptions. “.
