Deep concerns over insulin shortages
The Guardian, Daily Mail
Latest news reports including today’s front page of The Guardian, has highlighted that insulin shortages are leading to heightened stress and anxiety among diabetes patients in the UK.
We shared a statement with the national press, emphasising that the impact of medicine shortages on patients and community pharmacies remains a significant concern.
Our Director of Pharmacy Funding, Mike Dent, said:
“The impact of medicine shortages on patients and our community pharmacies continues to be a deep concern. The shortages affecting several medicines including anti-epileptic drugs, insulins and certain diabetes treatments are not only affecting the timely dispensing of medications but are also placing huge strain on community pharmacies operationally and financially. Pharmacy teams are spending significant amounts of time and resources trying to source vital medications, diverting attention from other essential tasks and increasing workload pressures. Additionally, pharmacies often end up supplying medicines at a financial loss due to inflated purchase costs or insufficient reimbursement, further exacerbating the financial challenges they face. Community pharmacies are already weighed down by long-standing funding pressures and it is a battle to keep up with the large number of medicines supply issues. This has challenging consequences for patients, who experience delays in accessing crucial medications. The Government needs to step in and do more to stabilise the medicines market, address supply chain disruptions, and ensure there’s better access to essential medications for patients.”
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Coverage:
Insulin shortages ‘causing stress and anxiety’ for UK diabetes patients | Diabetes | The Guardian
