The Government has banned aspirin from leaving the UK due to dwindling supplies in pharmacies.
An export ban on the everyday painkiller came into force on Saturday, meaning it is illegal to export the medicine out of the country, or to hoard stocks inside the UK.
The Department of Health made the move after chemists warned that manufacturing delays and poor supply due to overly low pricing was hitting stocks on their shelves.
The Government has also imposed an export ban on the cancer drug Ifosfamide due to the same shortage issues.
The Independent Pharmacies Association told The i Paper that popular blood pressure medicines such as Amlodipine and Ramipril were also in short supply.
NHS at ‘back of queue’ to buy drugs
UK stocks of aspirin have been hampered by delays in production, the majority of which takes place in India.
But the IPA said there is also an ongoing issue with the low price the UK government pays companies for aspirin, which means international manufacturers are choosing other countries to sell the medicine to first.
Britain was being left at the “back of queue” as a result, IPA chief executive Dr Leyla Hannbeck said.
The cheap price meant that a pack of 30 aspirin tablets is currently cheaper than a banana.
The IPA said supplies of aspirin 75 mg dispersible tablets – those that can be dissolved in water – were running low because the manufacturer had production and distribution delays.
While supplies have been increased, there is still very low availability
Blood pressure medicines running low
The blood pressure medicine Amlodipine in 5 mg and 10 mg are also running short because some suppliers have stopped supplying due to low prices, leaving less stock available, which in turn reduces how much pharmacies can order.
Hannbeck said: “It is incredibly worrying to see shortages of essential medicines such as aspirin and blood pressure treatments appearing in pharmacies.
“These low stock levels are partly due to manufacturing delays, but also because pharmacies are simply unable to order the quantities they need.
“The reality is that the prices paid for many medicines by the NHS are so low that manufacturers often prioritise supplying other countries instead, leaving the UK pushed to the back of the queue.
“When limited stock becomes available then the price shoots up to levels which becomes unaffordable for pharmacies to order and they are left severely out of pocket.
“It is vital that the Government urgently reviews how medicines are reimbursed to pharmacies, otherwise these shortages will only worsen.
“In the meantime, anyone affected by a medicine shortage should speak to their local pharmacist, who is a highly trained healthcare professional and can advise on suitable alternatives where available.”
Women unable to get epidurals during childbirth
The supply shortages follow concerns over stockpiles of medicines needed for epidurals given to women in labour in hospital.
Some trusts are reporting shortages of diamorphine for use in epidurals, with doctors switching to other pain relief for women.
A Department for Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “This government inherited ongoing global supply problems, but we have robust measures in place to mitigate disruption for patients.
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“We are strengthening our domestic resilience further by investing up to £520 million to manufacture more medicines, diagnostics, and medical technologies in the UK. We are also working closely with the NHS, regulators and other key partners to cut red tape to grow our life sciences sector and with international partners to bolster supply chains.”
The Government said the overwhelming majority of the 14,000 licensed medicines in the UK were in good supply, and that there were well-established processes in place to tackle shortages, including offering patients alternative treatments until medicines were back in stock.
The resilience of UK supply chains is a key priority, and the Department of Health is working to build long term supply chain resilience for medicines and prevent disruption and avoid shortages in future, including collaborating with international partners such as the EU and member states, the Government said.
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