Thor283Specifically I mean why is this happening? But also does anyone know of any other drugs that this happening to? Here are the ones I know of.
Back last Spring or Summer it seems to have started with the OTC drug, Imodium. Specifically the pills in the box. The liquid is still available. There are also still some of the generics made, on the shelf. But the boxes are gone.
Tylenol was also gone for several months. First regular Tylenol in all it's varieties and then Tylenol PM. Around here Tylenol PM came back first, and now several of the regular varieties. But it's only a small number of boxes on the shelf. A year ago, a large supermarket or drug store might have several hundred boxes of Tylenol in all strengths and pill types. No more. Why?
Next I heard of Adderall Immediate Release in all sizes. I think Adderall XR is still available.
The latest is the Name Brand Subutex, which is the drug Buprenorphine as a sub lingual pill. What happened to it? And from what my doc told me, we should soon see Suboxone tablets becoming scarce. He said the parent company of this line of meds wants everyone on Suboxone Film Strips and that's why this is happening. However, I don't know where he got that info from, so I don't know how true it is.
Does anyone know of any other drugs effected, whether OTC or prescription?
Does anyone know why this is happening?
Can this have anything to do with the Earthquake and Tsunami that devastated Japan? I mention this because someone on another board, a more International board than this one, said something about the severe drug shortages now facing the Japanese people, and he issued a dire warning to the rest of us about our dependencies on all kinds of drugs. And we are now facing shortages in the USA. I'm even wondering if this is happening all over the country? So I'm asking here because I presume ppl from all over come here. I'm on the North East Coast. Where is this happening? I have become quite concerned.
herbp
Jillynnie
Jillynnie
tlcandmore
tlcandmore
Thor283
lady from...
Hi Herb,
The real reason behind the Suboxone is probably loss of the patent with the pills. When Subutex went generic my doc told me Suboxone had not because the generic co. can't find an inexpensive way to mix the Naloxone and Bupe. Probably they have, based on what Jilly said below. Or it's loss of the patent. But based on what I see with generic Subutex, the cheap way of making it is very inferior.
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But if the OTC meds are not on the shelf does the store still have them? Did you ask for them and received them? The Tylenol is back but in very limited amounts. There was 1 box of only 6 tablets of Imodium in 1 store last week. Imodium used to come in 12, 24 and I think 48 tabs. I need the large sizes. Haven't seen them yet. Somehow I doubt what that guy told you Herb. Maybe it's true in that 1 store, but what about supermarkets and CVS type stores? Or are we going back to "ye olden days", when you went into a store and had to ask for everything that cost more than 6 for a penny. That was before me too. Or they might try putting in stores machines where you have to first pay then a door opens and gives you the product. They used to have food places like that called the Automat.
I think there's more to this Herb, I just don't know what. But I think we all better get concerned. Fast.
I know, from experience, the difference between the good percocet and the lousy percocet. I know the main ingredient has to be there. I always thought it was the 'fillers' which were cheaper but did not get the actual drug distributed throughout the body efficiently and quickly!
I really hope this won't be the case when and if we get changed up here in Canada!
Oh Good lord, say it ain't so??? NOT SUBOXONE??? I am aware of many of the prescription only shortages, as I've had one hell of a time getting adderall IR scripts filled (in Delaware) since mid October. I've gotten around it by switching to XR, which I've had no problem with getting filled, and luckily in the Shire brand name... the IR form is slowly making it's way back, short allocation, chain/retail pharmacies are getting it, but much smaller quantities, so it's gone not long after it gets in the door! some places are getting the Teva/Barr back in stock, and walgreen's has good 'ol core pharma, which absolutely sucks and i stopped taking it after 2 days of nausea and brain-searing headaches...
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I have tried the strips a few times, and i didn't think they were horrible, but definitely prefer the tab! also, the strips are just so inconvenient!! I often take a half, and I do not see me cutting a strip in half, it seems that might mess with the integrity??? I don't know if this is a coincedence or not, but I was talking to an AETNA member services rep and i was told suboxone was going to require Pre-authorization effective November (guess it happened within the last few weeks? I had an Rx filled on 11/3 and had no trouble?) If you are currently getting your suboxone thru ur prescription plan, please call them to make sure if this is effecting your prescription! If you have already been getting suboxone scripted for a while, u should be ok. I was told i was "grandfathered" in since my Rx started a little over a year ago... I sure as hell would not be able to afford an out of pocket cost of $450-$500 for 60 lousy pills for a month... i will keep tapering, that's for sure. Im very frustrated to hear this...
Part of the problem (as far as why there are shortages), is that the manufacturing plants who produce a lot of the generics did not pass FDA GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) Inspection. The money it would cost to correct the infractions that made them fail, outweigh the marginal profit they've been making off the medication, so these Manufacturing sites have not re-opened for production yet... it's all just pretty God awful, and we definitely have overseas outsourcing to blame for a huge part of this!!! Foreign plants who are producing our generic drugs are not held to the same standards since FDA does not go there to inspect, but once enough problems arise and recalls start occuring, those plants get flagged quick as s***!
I work for a small pharmaceutical company and get a weekly subscription to the "Pink Sheet", and read today that there are more scheduled meetings in congress to address the national shortage of a wide variety of med shortages (u can go to the FDA website, and on the home page there is a link to the FDA's current drug shortage list, as well as links to a list that shows which drugs have been "replenished".
sorry for going on so long, just trying to offer any info i can and express my frustration at the same time... it's been bad enough with adderall, and now if this is going to be suboxone as well, i'm really going to be a very unhappy lady. Most people prefer the sub tabs, they can't do this!!!
Please post any info/news u may happen to come across, i will do the same.
Thanks.
Hi Danni,
You don't need to apologize for a long post. That was some great inside information. So wait a minute now. Are you saying some of our generic drugs are made in other countries where the FDA can't see them, or what they do? Really? I didn't know that.
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Do you know if the Roxane pharmaceuticals are made out of the USA? I've said this before, that Roxane Subutex is not made correctly. Some ppl say it's fine, but I doubt that. Maybe they never compared it to the NB so they don't know what real Subutex should feel like. I mean if you never had real homemade tomato sauce, made by a real Italian cook, how would you know some of the jar sauces are like thickened tomato juice? You wouldn't. I know because my dear Mother was a real Italian cook. And I know what real Subutex feels like because I took the Name Brand for 5 years. But the problem is not only with Subutex. A month ago my pharmacy got in Roxane made Furosamide. That's a diuretic drug that also lowers blood pressure. One thing it does is to make you urinate like no tomorrow. Well guess what, Roxane Furosemide doesn't make you urinate much extra at all. I started taking it for edema and the edema hasn't come back yet. But it's only been 4 weeks. Nevertheless, Roxane Furosamide does not work the same as every other brand I have had. Furosamide isn't a drug you feel in your mind, but Subutex is. And Roxane doesn't do any of the things Subutex is supposed to do except for one. It stops wds from other opiates. But it then causes cravings for itself, and more anxiety than a whole bottle of Xanax could make go away. You know what I mean. So please tell me, are Roxane drugs being made abroad, where the FDA can't do anything? And btw, do you know how I report a drug to the FDA?
And yes, you can cut the Suboxone Film Strips as much as you need to. It doesn't harm them. In fact I am told they can be cut much more accurately than the pills. Which makes sense. They can't crumble into little pieces if the razor isn't brand new sharp. And btw, I think the temperature or humidity also effects whether a tablet cuts right or crumbles too. I think.