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[Kathleen]

Hello ladies.

I've just been speaking to my neighbour who is having trouble sourcing her medication and thinks it may be due to people stockpiling because of Brexit. I said that I was worried about this as my Oestrogel is made in France but the drugs she uses are Naproxen for arthritis and Omeprazole for acid reflux. I thought I would mention this on the forum as I know many ladies rely on these drugs and may want to talk to their pharmacists about it.

Take care everyone.

K.

[Shadyglade]

It's the drug companies that are stockpiling, not patients, and they have been told to do so by the government. I don't know if this is resulting in less supplies being delivered to pharmacies, but it is a possibility.

Scaremongering or not, you decide, but it is a bloody mess and so unnecessary.

[Kathleen]

Hello ladies.

 My neighbour has learned from Twitter that many other people are having problems obtaining these drugs from their pharmacies.

Let's hope it will be resolved soon.

Take care everyone.

K.

[Annie0710]

I've had trouble getting any epipens so am using a different brand x

[Dancinggirl]

I had a week in Gran Canaria in early December - so I popped into a pharmacy there and bought a box of Vagifem ‘just in case'.  I doubt the NHS will deem any form of HRT essential, so if there are any shortages we women will doubtless be at the bottom of the queue.

My sister is a prescribing nurse and she said that there are worries about things like asthma drugs!!!

Let's hope this whole Brexit thing gets sorted soon. DG x

[Annie0710]

I had a week in Gran Canaria in early December - so I popped into a pharmacy there and bought a box of Vagifem ‘just in case'.  I doubt the NHS will deem any form of HRT essential, so if there are any shortages we women will doubtless be at the bottom of the queue.

My sister is a prescribing nurse and she said that there are worries about things like asthma drugs!!!

Let's hope this whole Brexit thing gets sorted soon. DG x

That's worrying, I'm struggling to recover from bronchitis from  3 weeks ago and my asthma pump has been a lifeline (as are my epipens) x

[CLKD]

In which case ALL patients should be informed by letter from the Government Health Minister!  Our Surgery won't prescribe extra unless I'm going on holiday and I keep a careful eye on which meds I request.

Most of what we read about Brexit is scare mongering.  We haven't been there.  No one can possibly know what will happen let alone what might occur.   We should be more worried about HS2 

[Shadyglade]

Is NHS already finding it hard to get medicines?
Hugh Pym
Health editor
@BBCHughPym on Twitter
18 December 2018

Supply shortages and rising prices for some medicines are being reported by pharmacists and GPs. The possibility of a no-deal Brexit is being blamed.

So what is going on in the pharmaceutical world and what might it mean for patients?

There is nothing new about occasional shortages of certain types of medicine.

But there are reports of more acute problems than usual and some are citing a market reaction to the risk of the UK leaving the European Union without a deal.

Public may have to stockpile drugs in no-deal Brexit

Six key questions Brexit poses for the NHS

Brexit: NHS managers warn about impact of no deal

The organisation that negotiates drug pricing on behalf of pharmacies told BBC Radio 5 Live's Wake up to Money that Brexit is already affecting the supply and price of some key generic drugs.

The programme was contacted by a patient unable to obtain the usual anti-inflammatory for her arthritis who was told she had to have a substitute because of shortages.

Simon Dukes, chief executive of the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC), said there were supply shortages for a number of reasons and that "concerns around a no-deal Brexit are likely to exacerbate those ongoing issues".

In a letter to the Health Select Committee he referred to recent price rises, saying: "The surge may be due to a combination of factors including Brexit planning and contingency."

Generic medicines
The medicines market is complex. The big pharma companies market their own-brand drugs and the overall cost to the NHS is capped each year.

Once a patent expires, drugs become "generic" which means that any manufacturer and distributor can make and sell them.

The prices of these generic medicines rise and fall in a market which can be opaque.

Pharmacists have to pay the going rate and claim back from the NHS according to an agreed tariff but sometimes that tariff doesn't keep up with market moves and that leaves pharmacies out of pocket.

It is the price and supply of these generics which have caused concern amongst pharmacies.

Their cash flow comes under severe pressure if the extra costs of the generic drugs are not covered quickly by the NHS.

Sometimes wholesalers cannot immediately replenish supplies at pharmacies and that means disappointment for GPs and patients.

Stockpiling is a vexed issue.

The government has told manufacturers of both branded and generic drugs to ensure that six weeks' worth of supplies have been built up to ensure continuity in the event of a no-deal Brexit.

This exercise has been largely successful.

Hospitals and patients have been told not to build up their own private supplies.

Unofficial stockpiling
But the PSNC suspects that there is unofficial stockpiling of generic drugs somewhere in the medicines supply chain.

A combination of that and distributors possibly raising prices in anticipation of there being no deal are factors in the recent market moves.

Image copyrightGETTY IMAGES
Image caption
Pharmacists report difficulties obtaining some drugs
In response to the BBC Radio 5 Live story, there have been tweets from GPs, pharmacists and patients pointing to difficulties obtaining certain drugs.

There is clearly a feeling that these problems go beyond the occasional supply issues seen in the system.

The Department of Health and Social Care told the BBC: "Our number one priority is to ensure the continued supply of medicines and we work closely with industry and partners in the health system to help prevent disruption.

"The department has well-established processes to manage and mitigate the small number of supply problems that may arise at any one time due to manufacturing or distribution issues."

The British Generic Manufacturers Association denied there had been a "surge" in prices and said global market forces as well as Brexit were at play.

The association added: "We are working with the government, in the same forums as the PSNC, to ensure that patients can continue to receive their medicines in the case of a no-deal Brexit.

"If all in the supply chain are following the government's advice and not hoarding supplies of medicines, this should have no impact on current prices."

The government's line is that contingency plans for a no-deal Brexit are in place, including chartering aircraft to bring in drugs with a short shelf-life.

But there are concerns in the health world as the UK's departure from the EU draws nearer.

Some question whether a six-week official stockpile is enough. Others point to the recent price rises of generic drugs as a pointer to what might happen in the event of a disorderly Brexit.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-46597425

[CLKD]

 

[Stillsearching]

My husband uses naproxen for arthritis. Our usual pharmacy was telling everyone they hadn't been able to get any for weeks. I took the prescription to Boots and they filled it no problem. The same thing happened with my HRT and again Boots ordered it for me next day. After Brexit we'll still be able to source drugs from around the world just as other non EU countries do, if for some unlikely reason our French 'friends' decide they don't want to sell to us.  If our government truly can't prepare for any potential changes in drug suppliers then they really are useless. Does anyone remember the real shortages of the 70's? My grandma had about a ton of sugar hidden under her bed. Goodness knows what she needed it for. Did anyone have a millennium cupboard ready for when computers crashed world wide?

[Katejo]

The expected 'Millennium crash didn't happen because teams of people did their utmost to avoid it. I recently read comments from someone who was closely involved 

[JaneinPen]

Thanks for that Shadyglade

[dahliagirl]

Did anyone have a millennium cupboard ready for when computers crashed world wide?

Ah - yes - I remember being advised about that.  It will be a cold day in hell when I stockpile tins of potatoes 


I have been reading on twitter that there are various problems around getting naproxen at the moment, and that pharmacies (wholesale/warehouses?) are supposed to be holding a six week supply, which has to come from somewhere since the manufacturers are not manufacturing more for them to do this.

Trying to order my supplies in plenty of time - I have had various problems with getting vagifem over the years due to some bureaucratic supply problem, so always get that as soon as the computer allows (within reason).

[Katejo]

Did anyone have a millennium cupboard ready for when computers crashed world wide?

Ah - yes - I remember being advised about that.  It will be a cold day in hell when I stockpile tins of potatoes 


I have been reading on twitter that there are various problems around getting naproxen at the moment, and that pharmacies (wholesale/warehouses?) are supposed to be holding a six week supply, which has to come from somewhere since the manufacturers are not manufacturing more for them to do this.

Trying to order my supplies in plenty of time - I have had various problems with getting vagifem over the years due to some bureaucratic supply problem, so always get that as soon as the computer allows (within reason).

If the computer says 'NO' isn't that just a GP refusing to issue a new prescription because he/she thinks you had one too recently?     I didn't hoard anything for the Millennium bug  threat.

[dahliagirl]

It automatically sets a time for the next prescription which will be the same if you order straight away or in two weeks - so I order as soon as it is time - if I do that each time, then I am well in hand and that irons out any problems with the chemists or bank holidays/xmas.  If I kept doing it, I would end up with a small stock