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Tag: shortage

  • How rumours of Hollywood’s Ozempic drug use went mainstream, fuelling a shortage in diabetes medication

    How rumours of Hollywood’s Ozempic drug use went mainstream, fuelling a shortage in diabetes medication

    When talk show host Andy Cohen complained that some celebrities were dropping extreme amounts of weight, he unveiled Hollywood’s worst-kept secret.

    “Everyone is suddenly showing up 25 pounds lighter,” he tweeted.

    “What happens when they stop taking #Ozempic?????”

    He was referring to semaglutide, which is sold under the trade name Ozempic, a drug developed to treat type-2 diabetes by lowering blood sugar levels and regulating insulin.

    Taken in the form of weekly injections, it has been hailed as a game changer for American diabetics because of its effectiveness and ability to improve a patient’s quality of life.

    However, more recently, it has become known for its side effect: weight loss.

    One study, funded by the manufacturer, found the drug helps suppress hunger and prompts the stomach to empty more slowly.

    In the past year, the injectable drug has become increasingly popular with celebrities, tech moguls and TikTok influencers as a quick and effortless way to lose weight.

    Twitter owner Elon Musk told fans that he credits his “fit, ripped and healthy” appearance to a combination of fasting and injections of the drug.

    Hollywood trade publication Variety claimed that celebrities are forking out $2,200 every month for an off-label prescription of the drug to transform their bodies.

    However, as TikTok influencers hail the “skinny pen” as a quick weight-loss fix, diabetic patients who need the drug to manage their condition — and those who have been advised to lose weight for their health — are left in a desperate situation.

    There is now a severe shortage of semaglutide in many countries around the world.

    Australians who rely on it have been told they may have to go without until at least March.

    Hollywood’s obsession with weight loss and the rise of this drug

    The rush on semaglutide and its popularity on TikTok has coincided with what style writers claim is a global resurgence of the “skinny trend”.

    With Y2K-inspired low-rise jeans back in fashion and the hashtag #SkinnyLegend doing the rounds on TikTok, health experts feared a surge in toxic diet culture was imminent.

    “We tried this in the 90s and millions of people developed eating disorders,” British actress and body-positivity advocate Jameela Jamil has said.

    “We’re not doing this again. We’re not going back. Our bodies are not trends.”

    Jameela Jamil poses in a black strapless gown
    British actress Jameela Jamil says misuse of semaglutide is behind “the notable plummeting of weight” among celebrities. (Reuters: Aude Guerrucci)

    Jamil has also slammed GPs, medical spas and beauticians for helping celebrities access the drug for aesthetic reasons.

    “Don’t take the ‘skinny pen’ — or whatever other normalising names they have given — for a new starvation method,” she said.

    Semaglutide works by imitating a gut hormone called GLP1, which allows the body to feel fuller for longer and reduces appetite.

    It comes in two primary dose levels, one — sold as Ozempic — has been available in the US since 2017 and Australia since 2019 and has primarily been used for diabetes patients because of its ability to manage glycated haemoglobin.

    When blood sugar levels start to rise after eating, the drug stimulates the body to produce more insulin, helping to reduce blood sugar levels.

    The other option, Wegovy, is a newer, higher-dose version that was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration last year, and works similarly but is prescribed exclusively to patients who want to “eat fewer calories, and lose weight“. It is not yet available in Australia.

    Semaglutide can be highly effective, with one study attracting attention last year after finding participants lost on average 15 per cent of their body weight.

    “The older drugs that we’ve had for weight management, we’ve had those for over 10 years, some of them we’ve had since the 1950s, like phentermine,” said Amanda Velazquez, who works at Cedars-Sinai Center for Weight Management and Metabolic Health in Los Angeles.

    Medical consultation between patient and practitioner.
    Doctors have been urged to prescribe alternative treatments for diabetes that may be just as effective as semaglutide.(Pixabay)

    “Those medications help people lose somewhere around 5 to 10 per cent of their weight. [But] people didn’t pay as much attention to these medications until Wegovy came around.”

    As the pens became more and more popular, both options suffered from supply shortages.

    This, in turn, worked “like a domino effect”, sparking shortages worldwide and forcing patients to move on to other drugs such as Trulicity, said chair of the diabetes network at the The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners Gary Deed.

    TikTok videos advertising to people who ‘may not need the medication’

    Health authorities in the US and the UK have confirmed shortages of semaglutide, but have said only that an increase in demand is to blame.

    Meanwhile, in Australia, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) has suggested the drug’s popularity online had sparked the shortages.

    “When videos about achieving rapid weight loss with Ozempic went viral on TikTok, the trend was also reported online and across other media,” the TGA said in November last year.

    “This triggered a huge demand for the product that the manufacturer was not prepared for, and it quickly developed into a worldwide shortage.”

    The drug’s Danish manufacturer, Novo Nordisk Pharmaceuticals, reported that it struggled to keep up with an “unexpected increase in consumer demand” in 2022.

    The TGA said it’s investigating what could be unlawful advertising of Ozempic in Australia, and is in touch with social media platforms, including TikTok, to discuss the ways the drug is being discussed online.

    A screenshot of a page displaying videos of people talking about Ozempic.
    The drug’s hashtag has received more than 383 million views on TikTok.(Supplied)

    The search for this drug has generated more than 383 million views on TikTok, with many crediting it for their shrinking bodies.

    Under the hashtag, users share before and after videos of themselves or detail their weight-loss journey.

    However, health experts warn it’s not a cure-all.

    “I worry that, with the TikTok videos and things like that, it’s broadcasting and advertising to populations who are not in need of this medication, and perhaps using it for the wrong intentions,” Dr Velazquez said.

    “We have specific criteria from our national guidelines as to who would benefit most from the medication and, if someone does not meet those criteria, they should not be taking these medications.”

    Those taking the injections are required to make changes to their lifestyle, whether that be adopting healthy eating habits and/or increasing their exercise regimes.

    There are also the drug’s side effects, the most common including nausea and constipation, while some patients have also reported losing their appetite and no longer finding food appealing.

    The drug can also be expensive for patients without insurance in America, costing upwards of $US892 ($1,300) for a month’s supply.

    It is much cheaper in Australia when accessed via the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, at around $130 per month.

    For most patients, some slightly uncomfortable symptoms may be worth it, but Dr Valazquez said the drug was not recommended for people deemed to be in a healthy weight range hoping to lose a few kilograms.

    “We don’t have any research yet for that population who does not meet the criteria [for the drug] to know if there’s going to be long-term consequences for them [using it],” she said.

    A study has also found that, once patients stopped taking the drug, they were more likely to gain the weight back.

    At the end of the day, Dr Velazquez said, the primary goals was to “make these medications accessible to the patients who need them the most”.

    “So anyone who’s taking the medication, when it’s not indicated for them, based off of guidelines, is one less person who can’t take it, who may need it.”

    Diabetics lose out

    With the drug in short supply in Australia, diabetics have gone online to explain how the run on it has impacted their daily lives.

  • Podcast: No Health Care News Shortage in 2023

    Podcast: No Health Care News Shortage in 2023

    00;00;08;27 – 00;00;19;24
    Kathleen Haddad
    Hello and welcome to another episode of “Health Affairs This Week”, the podcast where Health Affairs editors go beyond the headlines to explore the health policy news of the week. I’m Kathleen Haddad.

    00;00;20;17 – 00;00;21;20
    Chris Fleming
    And I’m Chris Fleming.

    00;00;21;29 – 00;00;49;00
    Kathleen Haddad
    So, Chris, last episode, we recapped the major developments of last year. But one last piece of health policy news broke after our last show. The 1.7 trillion omnibus spending bill that was enacted right before Christmas. It not only kept government open but contained important health policy advancements. Before we get rolling on that discussion, though, there were two news items of the past week that received scant attention.

    00;00;49;16 – 00;01;07;16
    Kathleen Haddad
    First, the FDA announced that misoprostol could be sold in pharmacies. That’s the abortion pill, and it can be prescribed via telemedicine appointments. Previously, the drug could only be given at a doctor’s office, which was an inconvenience and that made it inaccessible for many women.

    00;01;08;01 – 00;01;11;01
    Chris Fleming
    And Kathleen, what’s what’s the second news item that you mentioned?

    00;01;11;21 – 00;01;38;14
    Kathleen Haddad
    Chris, there’s a new COVID variant amongst us. Yeah, it’s called XBB.1.5. Dr. Zeke Emanuel, a former White House COVID policy adviser, says this this new variant comprises about 40{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} of current infections, which seem to be rising or are expected to rise after the effects of the holidays show in the data.

    00;01;39;05 – 00;01;47;26
    Chris Fleming
    Oh, well, it seems kind of redundant to say this with any sentence that it contains the word new variant and COVID, but that really doesn’t sound like good news, Kathleen.

    00;01;48;14 – 00;02;08;25
    Kathleen Haddad
    Well, medical experts say it’s the most infectious variant yet. And that will be interesting just to see how it plays out and how much strain it puts on the hospital system. But Chris, let’s move on to the huge government funding law enacted just before Christmas. It’s hard to know where to start in dissecting this massive law, but what can you tell us?

    00;02;09;19 – 00;02;36;23
    Chris Fleming
    Well, Kathleen, as you know, and you referred to earlier, we’ve developed this habit of ending our congressional sessions with these very large, catch-all bills at the end of the session. And, you know, I’d say that this is a crazy way to run a railroad if I wasn’t watching the as we record today on January 5th, the House trying to choose a speaker and going through multiple ballots for the first time in a century.

    00;02;37;15 – 00;03;19;16
    Chris Fleming
    But anyway, these these omnibus bills, as they’re referred to, they’re always chock full of pretty much everything and then certainly chock full of important health policy provisions. And this year was no exception. One example, physicians were facing a reduction in Medicare payment of, I think, 8.5{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} for 2023. And needless to say, they weren’t particularly happy about that. The omnibus eliminated a big chunk of that impending cut — that made physicians happier –but it still left a 2{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} cut for this year, for this year, for 2023, plus another 3.5{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} cut scheduled for next year for 2024.

    00;03;19;16 – 00;03;28;24
    Chris Fleming
    And that, needless to say, made physicians less happy. But the nature of these huge bills is that, you know, you tend to get half a loaf, you know, rather than the whole loaf.

    00;03;29;17 – 00;03;32;27
    Kathleen Haddad
    So, Chris, what about the value based payment?

    00;03;33;06 – 00;03;54;02
    Chris Fleming
    Right. So Congress, there was a value-based care bonus for physicians who participate in alternative payment arrangement. That would not…before the omnibus that would not have been available next year. Congress did make it available, but they reduced it. Used to be 5{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c}. They cut it down to 3.5{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c}.

    00;03;55;04 – 00;03;57;16
    Kathleen Haddad
    So what’s in the law on the hospital side, Chris?

    00;03;58;09 – 00;04;28;14
    Chris Fleming
    Ah, well, the omnibus. One of the things the omnibus did is it extended through 2025 two programs that help out rural hospitals that were scheduled to expire this year. The programs are the low-volume hospital program, which helps hospitals with a small number of Medicare patients. And on the other end, the Medicare Dependent Hospital program. And that’s a program that helps hospitals where the Medicare share of total patients is high.

    00;04;29;13 – 00;05;10;10
    Chris Fleming
    Would also, the omnibus also does extend for two years some telehealth flexibilities that were introduced during the pandemic through CMS waivers. These relax the site restrictions the the restrictions on the geographic sites that telehealth can be used for. And also it provide some flexibility regarding the use of audio only telehealth. We tend to think of video and high tech when we talk about telehealth, but turned out, maybe surprisingly to some, that audio-only because some people just don’t have access to broadband.

    00;05;10;10 – 00;05;38;02
    Chris Fleming
    And for other reasons, audio-only became very important during the pandemic. Many had hoped that that that these would be these would be extended permanently. But, you know, obviously, two years, in the view of many is better than nothing. And back to the half a loaf theme from earlier now. And I also should add very quickly that the omnibus also extended something called the Hospital Home program, and that’s something that was important during the pandemic.

    00;05;38;02 – 00;05;47;06
    Chris Fleming
    It allows hospitals to treat more acute care patients at home through mechanisms like remote patient monitoring, telehealth and in-person care.

    00;05;47;16 – 00;06;01;01
    Kathleen Haddad
    Right. And I think what the Health Affairs journal, we’ve published a number of articles on that topic. Let’s go move forward to the Medicaid related provisions. What do you know about that?

    00;06;01;09 – 00;06;31;08
    Chris Fleming
    Yeah, there’s there was some really important stuff that, you know, raising will raise some challenges, but there’s some the omnibus attempted to to meet that challenge by including some some safeguards as well. Let’s back up a little bit in the Families First back, I think in 2020, early in the COVID pandemic, in the Families First Act, Congress gave states this bump in Medicaid funding, I think 6.2 percentage points.

    00;06;31;08 – 00;07;00;08
    Chris Fleming
    But to get that money, states had to to to do follow what are called, “maintenance of effort” requirements, which meant that they had to suspend Medicaid eligibility redeterminations during the public health emergency. And that was declared by the federal government in connection with COVID. So once someone was on Medicaid, you couldn’t go through and do the sort of the normal process that states do of checking whether they were still eligible.

    00;07;00;18 – 00;07;22;06
    Chris Fleming
    So this is a big deal because, you know, during the pandemic, the that was a big deal because that Medicaid program grew. It grew like 30{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c}. And the program had, you know, really it was a really huge kind of pillar for folks trying to weather the pandemic who might have lost their jobs and would have lost health insurance.

    00;07;22;28 – 00;07;44;14
    Chris Fleming
    So the emergency that this was tied to, the public health emergency, is still in effect. But the omnibus actually ended this maintenance of effort requirement, and that ends as of April of this year, April 2023. And that means that states at that point will be able to return to normal eligibility redeterminations.

    00;07;44;21 – 00;07;50;22
    Kathleen Haddad
    Chris, what are the protections against immediate disenrollment for Medicaid enrollees?

    00;07;51;10 – 00;08;13;29
    Chris Fleming
    Right, and that’s that’s an important question, because the worry is, you know, that it won’t just be people who are actually, who’ve who’ve become ineligible that would lose their eligibility would be pushed off the rolls. It might be people who were still eligible, but they’re you know, communications issues, getting in touch with many Medicaid beneficiaries, there are bureaucratic errors.

    00;08;14;09 – 00;08;50;16
    Chris Fleming
    So, you know, the omnibus tries to deal with that. It has this instead of just eliminating that 6.2 percentage point bump in Medicaid payment entirely, it has a transitional phase where the payment is still there for the rest of 2023, but goes away in stages. And to get that money, states do have to agree to some safeguards. So, for instance, if they try to mail…reach a Medicaid enrollee by mail and don’t get a response, they just can’t kick him off the roll– him or her– off the rolls.

    00;08;50;29 – 00;09;15;12
    Chris Fleming
    They need to try to reach the person at least one other way. Joan Alker on the “Say Ahhh!” blog and many of her colleagues at Georgetown, they do a great job of covering these safeguards and the omnibus in general. They note also, for instance, importantly, that, you know, there are some some pro-coverage elements involved as well. So states will end up covering children continuously

    00;09;15;12 – 00;09;35;09
    Chris Fleming
    now for 12 months in Medicaid and CHIP as a result of the omnibus, regardless of changed circumstances. And the omnibus also extends the overall CHIP funding with some important policies, such as express lane eligibility for two years. And I think now through the end of fiscal year 2029.

    00;09;35;09 – 00;10;10;21
    Kathleen Haddad
    I think HHS estimates that 15 million people could could lose Medicaid coverage and that maybe half of them or almost half are are eligible, even though they might get notices or be dropped. So these protections are important. I wanted also to note that Medicaid can now extend post-natal coverage from two months to 12 months. That’s a permanent provision. Now, I think currently 27 states do that.

    00;10;11;07 – 00;10;40;19
    Kathleen Haddad
    And so that is something that’s important for post-natal health and mental health. I wanted also to mention, Chris, that the omnibus provides a lot of funding for mental health programs and changes in Medicare mental health coverage. Previously, Medicare didn’t pay for counseling provided by marriage and family therapists or licensed mental health counselors. Now, Medicare will pay for that under the law.

    00;10;41;02 – 00;11;19;28
    Kathleen Haddad
    And to address the mental health workforce shortage, the law funds 200 new residency slots with half reserved for training psychiatrists. The 988 emergency mental health line colloquially only known as the Suicide Hotline, received $400 million in increased funding to address the opioid crisis. The law now allows doctors to prescribe buprenorphine without a special waiver from the DEA. The drug used to treat its use to treat opioid use disorders, and advocates say it is simply not being used widely enough.

    00;11;19;28 – 00;11;26;13
    Kathleen Haddad
    So this provision is aimed at increasing the use of appropriate use of buprenorphine.

    00;11;26;26 – 00;11;46;25
    Chris Fleming
    And now let’s bring it back to the public health arena where we started this this session. One of the things about the omnibus that’s interesting from a health policy point of view is it requires, I believe, Senate confirmation of the CDC director, right? That that sounds like it’ll be a non-contentious confirmation hearing.

    00;11;47;26 – 00;12;17;16
    Kathleen Haddad
    Right, Chris. So currently the CDC director appointment does not require Senate confirmation as do other agency heads. But beginning in January of 2025, confirmation will be required. And the interesting part of this is that it was a bipartisan bill or effort that put this provision in sponsored by Patty Murray and Richard Burr. I it’s going to be interesting to see how it plays out.

    00;12;18;00 – 00;12;33;10
    Kathleen Haddad
    Their purpose, legislative intent, there was to cope with another pandemic more easily than we did this one. But like you say, it’ll be interesting to see if that’s that’s really the case.

    00;12;33;10 – 00;12;45;08
    Chris Fleming
    Well, I think, you know, there’s much more to be said about the omnibus and the other news that you started us out with. But I think we’re we’re pretty much running out of time today, so I think we may have to end it there.

    00;12;46;00 – 00;13;22;01
    Kathleen Haddad
    As you say, Chris, the omnibus is chock full of health policy provisions, including many we haven’t been able to get to. I also want to remind listeners that next week, on January 11th, we’ll be restarting our “Health Affairs Pathways” podcast series, which is our fellowship program. Next week we begin with Michael Shen who is a physician. He talks about how Medicare payment and Medicaid payment to hospitals doesn’t fund everything they need funded in order to do their jobs.

    00;13;22;14 – 00;13;44;15
    Kathleen Haddad
    The podcast is terrific. I suggest you listen if you want to understand anything about payment to hospitals in our disjointed health care system. This is where to learn it. But thanks for your knowledge, Chris, and Happy New Year and thanks to our listeners. Be sure to subscribe to “Health Affairs This Week” wherever you get your podcasts.

    00;13;45;02 – 00;13;55;27
    Chris Fleming
    Thanks, Kathleen. It was it was fun, as always.

  • There’s a shortage of pediatric antibiotic medicines

    There’s a shortage of pediatric antibiotic medicines

    With many households throughout the place dealing with ill young children, the desire for reduction is high. But now, these shortages are extending to spot hospitals.

    WASHINGTON — It is a common sight at quite a few D.C. spot pharmacies: vacant shelves of several pediatric cough and flu reduction items. Medical practitioners say the return to normalcy write-up-pandemic is primary to a rebound of the two viral and bacterial infections that dipped in current yrs. 

    With quite a few family members across the place dealing with unwell youngsters, the demand for reduction is substantial. But now, these shortages are extending to area hospitals.

    But now, these shortages are extending to location hospitals.

    “Principal treatment doctors are truly overwhelmed with the quantity of prescriptions that they are making use of to take care of our small children,” claimed Kid’s National Clinic VP Main Pharmacy officer Dr. Eric Balmir. “Parents should not fear. There are different medications readily available and your child will still be treated appropriately for their ailment.”

    In accordance to pediatricians, several of the shortages are prescription-only antibiotics like oseltamivir or Tamiflu. 

    “Despite the fact that we are beginning to see some shortages in fever reducer medications, like acetaminophen, which is Tylenol and ibuprofen, which is Motrin, and Advil,” Annapolis-centered pediatrician Dr. Christina Johns claimed. 

    Montgomery County Govt Mark Elrich resolved what he phone calls the “Tri-demic” of COVID-19, RSV, and the seasonal flu. 

    “The hospitals are truly anxious about capacity levels and we have a few issues out there that can put persons in the hospitals,” Elrich said. 

    https://www.youtube.com/check out?v=TdRyDT3c-lY

    The trigger, according to medical practitioners WUSA9 talked to: Drug manufacturers base orders on forecasts from before in the yr, which did not predict a spike in RSV. Little ones contaminated with viruses could later want antibiotics mainly because of secondary infections.

    As for individuals neighborhood pharmacies encountering shortages of around the counter medicines, Dr. Johns suggests home remedies may perform ideal for straightforward coughs:

    “There is no good proof that any over the counter medicine performs properly in kids, so what we suggest in pediatrics is for kids who are over 12 months old to merely do a teaspoon of honey every few of hrs,” Johns reported. “And that helps to coat the inside of of the throat which can then aid to give maximize the all round humidity in the airway. That can actually assist settle down the cough. For children more youthful than 12 months that is not advisable. And so it’s only a make any difference of sitting down and enjoying in the lavatory with the steam likely entire tilt in the shower with your younger little one to assistance to reduce the cough. But in common, we propose averting those cough medications.”

    Maryland released their RSV monitoring on the internet dashboard Wednesday. The spike in instances appears to be coming down.

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  • Adderall shortage is so bad some patients can’t fill their prescriptions

    Adderall shortage is so bad some patients can’t fill their prescriptions

    Comment

    A countrywide lack of Adderall has remaining sufferers who count on the products for focus-deficit/hyperactivity condition scrambling to find substitute treatment plans and unsure no matter if they will be able to refill their treatment.

    The Foodstuff and Drug Administration introduced the scarcity very last 7 days, indicating that a person of the largest producers is encountering “intermittent producing delays” and that other makers can’t continue to keep up with need.

    Some individuals say the announcement was a belated acknowledgment of a truth they have faced for months — pharmacies not able to fill their orders and anxiousness about no matter if they will operate out of a medication necessary to control their each day lives.

    Industry experts say it is typically tricky for people to entry Adderall, a stimulant that is tightly regulated as a managed compound mainly because of substantial prospective for abuse. Treatment management frequently involves regular physician visits. There have been other shortages in new years.

    “This one is more sustained,” reported Timothy Wilens, an ADHD qualified and chief of kid and adolescent psychiatry at Massachusetts Standard Clinic who explained accessibility issues stretch back to spring. “It’s putting tension on sufferers, and it is putting pressure on institutions that support the individuals.”

    Erik Gude, a 28-yr-previous chef who life in Atlanta, encounters normal worries filling his Adderall prescription, regardless of whether it’s pharmacies not carrying generic versions or disputes with insurers. He has been off the medication for a month soon after his nearby pharmacy ran out.

    ADHD medical professionals weigh in on regardless of whether to consider meds although pregnant

    “People with ADHD commonly have decrease frustration tolerances, but there’s a quite particular form of irritation when you’ve finished all the points you’re intended to do, you have built all the cell phone phone calls, you’ve produced all the appointments, you do all the matters that are really challenging to do with ADHD,” said Gude, who chronicles dwelling with the situation on TikTok, YouTube and Twitch as @HeyGude, as effectively as on a podcast.

    Since he has been off his medicine, Gude reported, his brain has felt fuzzier and he has experienced additional issues cooking, caring for his doggy and sustaining usual snooze designs. He uncovered himself sidetracked and enjoying the piano for an hour and a 50 {fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c}. His mom texted him when she grew concerned that he experienced stopped routinely submitting in a household group chat.

    Gude is hesitant to return to his doctor to inquire for option medicine just after expending five a long time figuring out how to most effective control his treatment and aspect consequences.

    “You are weighing the deficits of not staying medicated at all with the satan you really do not know,” Gude said.

    Medical practitioners say sufferers who have trouble obtaining Adderall have other solutions mainly because the scarcity is uneven — with some tablet formulations and doses more abundant than other folks.

    Max Wiznitzer, an Ohio neurologist who treats small children and younger adults who have ADHD, claimed some clients who choose instant-launch tablets, which is what the Fda declared in small supply, could quickly swap to an extended-release formulation or other manufacturers. But any variations need to be built underneath the assistance of a medical doctor just after an analysis of the patient’s health care heritage, he explained.

    Medical practitioners share advice on working with the Adderall lack

    “This is just one more velocity bump in drugs administration,” reported Wiznitzer, who is also a board member with the advocacy team Small children and Grown ups with Awareness-Deficit/Hyperactivity Dysfunction. “There are a variety of solutions.”

    Some sufferers say the alternatives are not solving their dilemma.

    Becky Litvintchouk, a 38-calendar year-outdated who has taken Adderall on and off since she was a teen, suggests she was pressured to change to rapid-release tablets that left her with headaches and a racing heartbeat following she was unable to find a pharmacy on Very long Island stocked with the prolonged-release tablets she normally can take. She is cautious of solutions to Adderall after earlier medicine adjustments led to intense melancholy.

    Experts and patient advocates say men and women with ADHD can battle to navigate the health-related forms to access alternative solutions that do the job. Signs of ADHD involve difficulties arranging and focusing on duties, significantly when they take a extensive time.

    “It’s like a Catch-22 that you require to find enthusiasm to get your determination products,” said Holly Freeburg, a 34-year-outdated in central Illinois whose local Walgreens ran out of Adderall in April.

    She experienced to skip her medicine for quite a few days and skipped operate at a housekeeping task because of difficulties remembering particulars and handling worry. Freeburg explained she was fortuitous to have close friends who operate in drugs and moms and dads who served her make calls to discover a pharmacy in a close by town that experienced the drug in inventory.

    Erin Fox, who displays drug shortages as a senior pharmacy director at University of Utah Well being, claimed there have been repeated shortages of different varieties of Adderall considering that 2015. Limitations on how Adderall can be equipped and transferred make it extra hard to distribute in the course of shortages.

    “We have pharmacies, greater chains and huge distributors that have been underneath improved scrutiny for how they take care of controlled substances,” Fox claimed. “It’s not like a pharmacy can double the volume of their buy if they instantly get a whole lot of people.”

    This is why it is really so tricky to obtain a therapist right now

    Gurus say the increase of telehealth psychiatric providers has produced it less difficult for individuals to obtain Adderall and other amphetamines made use of to treat ADHD. The online psychological wellness start out-up Cerebral paused Adderall prescriptions in May perhaps as the company confronted allegations of overprescribing and an investigation by the Justice Section.

    Fox mentioned that without having far more info on prescriptions, blaming telehealth for the lack would be speculation.

    Teva Pharmaceutical is reporting the most widespread shortages of Adderall, a condition that is anticipated to relieve in coming months, in accordance to an Fda databases.

    A Teva spokesperson claimed the enterprise has been developing branded and generic Adderall “at ranges earlier mentioned historic desire.”

    “It is possible that some individuals might face a back again-get (intermittently) dependent on timing and demand from customers, but these are only short-term,” Kelley Dougherty, the spokesperson, wrote in an e mail. “We are entirely dedicated to uninterrupted offer and continuing to manufacture and distribute as considerably item as achievable every day. We are working closely with our producing facility and the [Drug Enforcement Administration] to see what more volume we may be capable to aid in the long term.”

    Adderall provides esports with an enigma

    Dougherty had beforehand attributed the most latest delays to a labor lack that has given that been solved.

    The Adderall shortage has grow to be a nationwide punchline on “Saturday Night time Live” and “The Day by day Show” over the earlier week, and persons on social media are joking that faculty grades are about to plunge.

    The response has disappointed people today with ADHD who say their disorders have very long been dismissed and their use of stimulants addressed with suspicion.

    “Adderall is not just there to aid you compose your school time period paper. It’s there so you can feed your young ones and go to work and run a household and handle your lifestyle,” explained Cate Osborn, a 34-yr-aged Atlanta resident who co-hosts the ADHD podcast “Catie and Erik’s Infinite Quest” with Gude. “For a lot of individuals, this is important, lifesaving treatment. It is the big difference among flourishing and surviving.”

    Litvintchouk, the New Yorker who experienced to swap to instant-release tablets, claimed the Adderall shortage must be seen like a shortage of insulin for diabetics and other therapies for continual circumstances.

    “The jokes are like, ‘Oh well, guess the finance bros will have to get started having cocaine,’” Litvintchouk mentioned. “We are not having it for general performance. We are using it just to be standard, to do our employment and to be in a position to function in society.”

    Litvintchouk was in a position to get back on her preferred prolonged-launch treatment with her most up-to-date refill previous week. But soon after various months of contacting a number of pharmacies and no fast conclude in sight to the scarcity, she is not confident what next month’s refill will deliver.

    She is considering stockpiling her medication by skipping supplements on weekends, when she does not have to go to her advertising and marketing task and can much better tolerate being miserable and nervous.

  • What to do during the tampon and pad shortage

    What to do during the tampon and pad shortage

    The offer chain and inflation are now influencing menstrual goods which implies your brand of tampons and pads might be more difficult to uncover.

    A number of components have led to a shortage of time period products and solutions from well known brand names like Tampax and Generally.

    Breanne Mueller, M.D., an OB/GYN at Sanford Overall health in Aberdeen, South Dakota, weighs in.

    “Women are manufacturer faithful,” Dr. Mueller informed Sanford Wellness News.

    “They use the identical merchandise their total lives and it is complicated to modify. So, when you see that your brand or your go-to is not there, it is a little little bit anxiety-provoking. That is what I’m listening to.”

    Why the scarcity?

    There are a several variables contributing to the bare shelves.

    According to the New York Times, Procter & Gamble — which manufactures tampon big Tampax, that sells 4.5 billion bins globally every single 12 months — said on a the latest earnings simply call that it experienced been “costly and hugely volatile” to obtain the raw components desired for creation, these kinds of as cotton and plastic.

    Inflation is also making other common menstrual products a lot more high priced.

    Bloomberg reported that the average selling price for a deal of menstrual pads enhanced by just about 8{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} from the start out of this calendar year by way of the conclude of May well, whilst the price of tampons increased by almost 10{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c}.

    Even further compounding the issue, Dr. Mueller reported, some of all those resources and goods ended up required by clinical professionals during the starting surges of the COVID-19 pandemic.

    On top of that, shortages of staff at factories to create the merchandise has brought on a lag desire. The reality that gals need to use menstrual care solutions, even if there is a restricted supply, enables companies to increase costs.

    This item shortage will come on the heels of another nationwide scarcity of toddler components.

    Some safe options

    “Maybe this is a good time to branch out and try out one thing new,” Dr. Mueller proposed.

    There are selection of secure choices and options for females to consider in the course of their interval which include reusable pads, period of time underwear and menstrual cups or discs.

    “These products and solutions can be pricy on the entrance finish but a lot of of them are reusable and environmentally pleasant,” she stated. “It may well take some demo and mistake to see how it matches your entire body, but it could be a fantastic time to consider something new. You may well conclude up liking it even greater than what you used ahead of.”

    Factors you must steer clear of

    Dr. Mueller has some assistance for items you should not do.

    Initially, don’t panic.

    “The lack is short term and there is no shortage in the other brands so there are many other merchandise readily available,” she stated.

    There are a couple items to stay away from when seeking to navigate the lack like:

    • Carrying tampons for extended stretches of time. This puts you at risk of toxic shock syndrome, a possibly deadly affliction that happens when tampons are worn for additional than eight several hours.
    • Reusing disposable items that are intended for just one-time use.
    • Stockpiling goods if you see extra than you have to have.

    Last of all, Dr. Mueller encourages ladies to be conscious and variety, and to donate any female cleanliness products and solutions anytime probable.

    Read through: Women and puberty: It is about additional than their initial interval

    “Because of shortages and increased charges on both of those labor and components, the price of actual female solutions has long gone up,” she said.

    “Not everybody has a lot of extra disposable revenue and there are people today who are struggling. If you do have the extra suggests or you do have the additional solution, take into consideration donating to systems that can assistance men and women who are battling.”

    If you have inquiries, health and fitness issues or difficulty finding alterative products and solutions, you are inspired to reach out to your women’s treatment specialist or locate a health practitioner at Sanford Wellness.

    Read much more

    …

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    Gynecology, News, Parenting, Specialty Care, Women’s

  • Dak’s Health, Tyron Update & WR Shortage

    Dak’s Health, Tyron Update & WR Shortage

    FRISCO, Texas – For the to start with time in two a long time, Dak Prescott is ultimately healthier.

    The Cowboys’ quarterback spoke to the media on Wednesday pursuing a apply that saw the Cowboys work by way of a myriad of drills and eventualities, and specifically a healthier Dak.

    “[This is the] healthiest I have been in a lengthy, prolonged time,” Prescott claimed. “So, I’m just blessed just to start out there and to be in a position to appear in balanced and just to perform on myself and just in general my full video game and not just specifically getting a person component of my system nutritious.”

    Prescott entered previous year coming off his season-ending ankle personal injury in 2020 that price him the final 11 weeks of the year. Final yr, Dak dealt with an arm problem in camp and then skipped a sport with a calf strain. On the other hand, Prescott made it known on Wednesday that his footwork was a precise piece of his activity he has been capable to perform on that he could not last offseason.

    “Almost everything actually,” Prescott said with a chuckle. “We’re screening 10-lawn commences the other working day, and mine might not have been what I required it to be. But I can convey to you it was considerably far better than it was last 12 months.”

    “I’m strengthening. It is really just about receiving far better in each component of my activity and not just essentially rehab.”

    Tyron Smith was held out of Wednesday’s OTA apply with lessen-back tightness, in accordance to head coach Mike McCarthy.

    Smith evidently has been operating with the crew all through all the off-period conditioning applications and the OTA procedures, but was held out Wednesday for precautionary factors.

    In his place, 2nd-12 months professional Josh Ball labored at still left deal with with the initial group.

    Rookie security Markquese Bell built one particular of the most effective plays of the OTA observe on Wednesday.

    It is really just yet another example how the undrafted rookie carries on to glow.

    “He’s been impressive,” head mentor Mike McCarthy claimed. “He jumped out at the minicamp. He was pretty remarkable in the zoom calls (primary up to the NFL Draft).”

    McCarthy claimed Bell, who starred at Florida A&M, has equivalent traits as Jayron Kearse, who has a hybrid purpose of basic safety and linebacker.

    “That absolutely aids. That is aspect of our attraction to him,” McCarthy explained of Bell, who was 1 of the Cowboys’ 30 visits.

    The Cowboys lined up CeeDee Lamb and Simi Fehoko as the initially-group starters at receiver on Wednesday. Lamb is the place he’s intended to be, but Fehoko obtained the nod as the Cowboys experienced a few other receivers down with accidents.

    Michael Gallup continues to rehab his ACL injury and his hopeful to return by the begin of the standard year. James Washington was in a strolling boot and need to pass up at the very least another week. Rookie WR Jalen Tolbert is performing by a hamstring issue.