FORT MYERS- FLA. — You may find it's difficult to find Adderall in Florida lately.
Leaders at Lee Health say it's now easier to get a prescription written and more people are noticing their need for it — and the pharmaceutical industry is struggling to keep up.
"Any pharmacist in southwest Florida knows that this is a problem," System Director of Pharmacy at Lee Health, John Armistead said.
The shortage of the drug, used to treat ADHD, all boils down to supply and demand.
"Telehealth has spurred that demand, now that people can get appointments via Telehealth instead of actual physician appointments. We've seen an increased number of prescriptions," Armistead said.
Another thing driving demand up, is parents noticing their children need medication after having them home through the pandemic.
"Now as they re-acclimate to school, we found increased numbers of students that required ADHD drugs as part of their therapy to really perform well in society and in schools," Armistead said.
At the same time—the pharmaceutical supply chain is taking hit after hit. The FDA put out a notice back in October of 2022. Eight months later, their website shows it's still a problem.
Manufacturers are having supply issues, too. There are currently six manufacturers with availability [accessdata.fda.gov], with one allocating supply only to existing customers.
But the FDA says the reason for the shortage is now shifting more from supply issues to heightened demand.
"We've had issues with the FDA approving new products. We found difficulty in the drug enforcement agency in allocating larger amounts to be made, as well as some manufacturers have dropped out of the market in making these drugs," Armistead said.
The FDA says a new drug manufacturer, U.S. Pharma Windlas, is joining the market and should have availability at the end of August 2023.
