The number of drug shortages aren't just at an all-time high — they're also reportedly lasting longer.
What they found: By the end of 2023, the average drug shortage lasted for over three years, up from about two years in 2020, according to a new report from U.S. Pharmacopeia.
Just over half of new shortages were among generic sterile injectables, which are more complex to manufacture.
Products with low prices had higher risk of shortage. Product discontinuations increased from 100 in 2022 to 140 last year, which the standards-setting organization said suggests tighter margins are forcing drugmakers to bow out.
"Economic pressures, especially the very low prices that generics manufacturers recover for many medicines, along with contracts that are frequently broken, have left our generic medicine supply chain fragile," said USP senior vice president Anthony Lakavage in a statement.
Flashback: There were 323 drugs in short supply as of April, according tothe American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, which said that's the highest amount since it began tracking in 2001.
