"I called 50 pharmacies before I found the medication." How Europe is tackling drug shortages

Monday, Oct 20, 2025

Mediapool

Parent anxiously searches for ADHD medication refills, calling numerous pharmacies monthly.

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[This is an automatically generated summary, for reference only]

Every month around the 18th, the author becomes anxious because their seven-year-old son’s prescription for Concerta, which he takes daily for ADHD, is automatically renewed in his health record and testing begins. They search Google Maps for nearby pharmacies and call them until they find one that has the medication available, having called fifty pharmacies before finding it.

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PULSE is an initiative coordinated by OBCT that has been promoting intensive journalistic cross-border collaborations in Europe since 2024. Its main aim is to help strengthen the European public sphere by reporting on and telling stories from new and diverse perspectives.

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