Four pharmaceutical companies had generic extended-release Adderall on backorder in August at a time of unprecedented demand for the attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder drug.
(Bloomberg) — Four pharmaceutical companies had generic extended-release Adderall on backorder in August at a time of unprecedented demand for the attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder drug.
Amneal Pharmaceuticals Inc., Rhodes Pharmaceuticals LP (a subsidiary of Purdue Pharma LP), Novartis AG’s Sandoz unit, and Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. all had supply issues with some doses of generic Adderall XR, according to the University of Utah’s drug information service and emails from the companies to the university staff provided to Bloomberg News. Some doses were expected to become available at the end of August and others in September.
Together, the companies sell just over half of all generic extended-release Adderall in the US, according to data from Symphony Health showing prescriptions dispensed at pharmacies in recent months. Extended-release drugs slowly deliver medicine to the body, allowing a person to take one pill early in the day as opposed to multiple pills throughout the day.
Teva, which sells more Adderall in the US than any other company, has been contending with delays for its generic immediate-release formulation of the ADHD drug over the past month. Kelley Dougherty, a Teva spokesperson, said that those delays were caused by labor shortages on the packaging line. While the problem has been resolved, it’s still taking time for the company to catch up, which is why some of the generic extended-release Adderall products are on backorder now, she said.
Sandoz spokesperson Leslie Pott said that customers have recently been asking to increase their generic extended-release Adderall orders. Sandoz isn’t able to meet all of those requests because the federal government limits how much Adderall each company can manufacture since the drug is a schedule II controlled substance, she said.
“If they have contracts from other manufacturers and they’re not getting a supply from other manufacturers, then they’re coming to us, but we are still restricted according to our official allocations,” Pott said.
Amneal and Purdue did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The US Food and Drug Administration is not reporting an overall shortage of Adderall.
Even before the shortages spread to drug companies beyond Teva, pharmacists were having trouble stocking the drug. Nearly two-thirds of community drugstores reported problems ordering Adderall at the end of July and beginning of August.
The National Community Pharmacists Association surveyed store owners and managers about their experiences purchasing brand and generic Adderall between July 25 and Aug. 5. Of the 358 who responded, 64% said that the medicines were on backorder.
Adderall prescriptions in the US have soared to record highs this year driven by a combination of more diagnoses and greater availability of the medicine through online startups, which have recently come under scrutiny for their prescribing practices. The drug is a stimulant that treats ADHD but it also can be abused.
(Corrects drug name’s spelling in second deck headline of story published Aug. 26.)
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