A pharmacist group is ringing the alarm bells over the rising number of important, life-saving drugs that are becoming increasingly scarce and says it has been an ongoing problem since as far back as 2001. The University of Utah Drug Information Service has recently warned the medical sector that there are currently 323 active drug shortages going on right now, putting lives in danger all across the nation, reported. The group said that they are tracking unprecedented , and wrote, “Ongoing and active shortages are the highest number (323) since we began tracking data in 2001,” according to .
The service compiles its data quarterly and follows reports from doctors and hospitals, especially hospital pharmacies, and other sources, the Post reported. After receiving the reports, the university then contacts the drugmakers to verify if there is a shortage, if more batches are in the pipeline, of if the shortages look to be chronic. UDIS lead researcher and director Erin Fox said that after receiving confirmations the data is then published to ASHP where the public can see the trends.
The Federal Drug Administration also tracks and information about drug shortages, but according to the Post, the UDIS data is more comprehensive. One difference between the two metrics is that does not break down its drug tracking based on adult/child versions. They track the overall drug, but don’t take note if there is a shortage in adult strength versus child strength, the Post noted.
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