Drug shortages plague Bulgaria, Spain, and the EU due to demand, production issues, and reliance on Asian imports.
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Pharmaceutical supply disruptions are driven by factors such as increasing demand, production issues, rising energy costs, and reliance on Asian raw material imports. Residents in Bulgaria face ongoing shortages of essential medicines, including those for diabetes, blood clotting disorders, asthma, oncology, epilepsy, and rare diseases, forcing them to seek medications in other countries or through unregulated channels. In Spain, there has been a significant increase in shortages of widely used antidepressants. Lithuania’s Ministry of Health notes that supply disruptions occur due to production problems, logistics, or commercial reasons, and while some issues are resolved quickly, complex shortages are harder to manage. The European Union faces a persistent and worsening drug shortage crisis, with critical shortages recorded across member states, threatening patient health and straining national healthcare systems. Current EU efforts, such as the proposed Critical Medicines Act and the establishment of a Critical Medicines Alliance, aim to enhance supply chain security and autonomy, but the European Court of Auditors concludes that existing measures are currently insufficient and require further implementation and funding to yield real results.
