Researchers have warned that Australia is facing a shortage of essential prescription medicines, with patients struggling to access life-saving treatments.
A study from the University of South Australia shows Australian pharmacists are at the mercy of unpredictable global supply chains for much-needed products.
Of the 142 pharmacists, about 90 percent said they seek alternative suppliers for medications on a weekly basis.
The same percentage of pharmacists indicated that they often replace similar medicines with medicines that are unavailable.
“There have been certain groups of medicines that have been in very short supply and extremely difficult to obtain,” Matthew Gillespie of the Pharmacy Guild told Nine News.
Adelaide pharmacist Theo Skrembos said the shortages are impacting medicines that treat diabetes, cholesterol and even antibiotics.
Hormone replacement medications are also scarce.
Ninety percent of Australian medicines come from overseas, and supply issues are difficult to predict.
Twenty-four-year-old Harrison Cal said getting his daily insulin medication has become a struggle
Mr. Cal said he has to call as many as 10 pharmacies to get the diabetes medication he needs
“Obviously this means higher costs that you then have to pass on to your patient, which is a bit unreasonable during a cost-of-living crisis,” Mr Skrembos said.
A 24-year-old Australian with type 1 diabetes, Harrison Cal, said he has fought for months to get the long-acting insulin drugs he needs twice a day.
“I have to call eight to 10 pharmacists, and they won't even stock Levimere, or sometimes even Novorapid which they don't have,” Mr. Cal said.
The federal government said the shortages are inevitable and they are working on a way to ensure more medicines are produced on Australian soil.
