There is a serious shortage of common, cheap medicines. These are medicines that the pharmaceutical companies have been making for decades. They are important in the treatment of many common symptoms including nausea, swelling, and itching. Since these drugs, which control such common symptoms, are simple, well understood, and easy to manufacture; why are extreme shortages happening?
It is because these drugs are also "cheap", meaning the profit margin on them is low. In many cases there is only one company with one plant manufacturing the supply for our whole country. Because this one company is trying to make a profit from the low cost drug they manufacture, they are financially lead to cut corners- safety corners. The FDA then, during inspections, finds faults and shuts down the plant until the problems are addressed. This abruptly ends the supply of that drug indefinitely, which forces physicians to choose another drug to treat their clients symptoms. The replacement drug is always less suited to the clients problem and does not work as well causing delays in treatment and unhappy clients.
The major pharmaceutical companies, which could better handle the smaller profit margin on some drugs, refuse to manufacture these endangered drugs because the profit margins are nowhere near those of the newly researched drugs that are just hitting the market. This is especially true in the field of oncology drugs. A dose of decadron (a common steroid) may cost a few dollars, but a dose of neupogen (which stimulates white blood cell growth) may cost $6,000!
The solution, then is either to raise the cost of these common medications, or to find a company which is willing to make a smaller profit margin on some drugs for the good of the American people. I don't think the problem will end anytime soon.
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