Ventolin, an bronchial asthma drug, is beginning to run out of pharmacies | EUROtoday

“Ventolin is now one of the drugs that is regularly out of stock, without us understanding why,” experiences Fabrice Camaioni, vice-president of the Federation of Pharmaceutical Unions of France (FSPF) at Parisian.

Questioned by the day by day, the National Medicines Safety Agency (ANSM) confirms difficulties, with out nevertheless mentioning a scarcity. She ensures that “management measures” have been taken, corresponding to quota distribution to wholesale distributors.

A manufacturing web site as reinforcement

This remedy, which isn’t but in scarcity, is in excessive demand in lots of pharmacies as a result of pollen season, which pushes sufferers to anticipate their buy of the spray. The GSK laboratory, which provides France with Ventolin from its Eure manufacturing facility, explains to Parisian to face “strong demand” on a world scale and ensures “to work in close collaboration with health authorities”.

READ ALSO Pollen: why the allergy season is longer and impacts extra individualsThe pharmaceutical group additionally introduced the reinforcement of a second manufacturing web site in its community, in Spain, “in order to increase the volumes placed on the market in the coming weeks”. The GSK laboratory additionally anticipates a rise in deliveries “in anticipation of the next winter season”.

READ ALSO Shortage of medicines: “The situation is catastrophic” Drug shortages have gotten an increasing number of recurrent, significantly as a result of costs are thought-about very low. According to The echoes, in France, a 3rd of metropolis medicines listed as important are bought at a unit worth 25 cents decrease than that of different markets. On common, they’ve decrease costs than elsewhere, with a variation starting from 14% to 32%, in comparison with Spain, Italy, Germany and the United Kingdom.