Medicines shortages: BGMA recommends reviewing pharmacy reimbursement levels

The British Generic Manufacturers Association (BGMA), the trade body for off-patent medicines, has made several recommendations to alleviate medicine
shortages, which not only have serious consequences for patients but also increase workloads for pharmacists.

England is currently experiencing twice as many medicine shortages as it did two years ago, with some products remaining out of stock for many months, the BGMA
reveals in a report, noting that “the vast majority are commonly used generic medicines.”

“We have witnessed the number of products facing supply challenges double in the past two years and remain at a high level since September 2023,” says BGMA chief
executive Mark Samuels.

In its report titled ‘Solutions to UK medicines shortages’ published on 1 October 2024, the BGMA proposes policy changes to tackle medicine shortages, including
incorporating supply chain resilience and past performance in hospital medicines tenders.

“Tender scoring should include whether supply issues were reported with adequate notice. Suppliers should be informed of changes in prescribing more quickly,” the
report says.