Meds shortage in the UK

[Strike26]

hi everyone- I just wanted to ask if anyone is having trouble getting repeat prescriptions. It recently took a week before my pharmacy (one of the big chains - I also rang others, all had run out) could supply my meds, in this instance Ropinirole. That was 5 nightmare days of RLS (as bad as I had ever had it).

Last week I was talking to my pharmacist generally and he said the supply chain is in chaos- his view was that the cause was Brexit and meds coming into the country or the “ingredients” for them to be produced here.

I’m not making a political point, but the 5?days without my meds were truly hell - just asking here if anyone else has had this experience?

[Hidden]

same problem in austria. i have been informed by various pharmacies that there are currently "delivery problems" for a number of medicines. the definitive reason for this, however, is not communicated to me. a terrible situation.

[Strike26 in reply to Hidden]

Here, one of the Pharmacy chains is asking customers to contact their Members of Parliament but it sounds like a much wider problem from what you say, not just the UK. That’s a bit scary- 5 days without RLS meds is bad, but if it was other conditions the consequences could be much more serious.

[Hidden in reply to Strike26]

various pharmacists gave me the answer, that this (the "delivery problems" ) is "due to the time in which we are currently living". imho, a pointless, if not cheeky, answer. the state must ensure that the supply of medication is maintained even in "difficult times". instead, we have a lot of useless goods, in abundance. it's scary, yes. in addition, rls/wed is an orphan disease.

maybe there are other generics - available - for ropinirole (anyway, DA's are no longer first-line treatment for rls/wed - you may want to reconsider continuing to take DA's ).

[Strike26 in reply to Hidden]

yup - Sue J’s advice to me previously applies here. I’m reluctant to change at the moment as Ropinirole is working reasonably well (especially since I stopped the anti depressants which were partly prescribed for RLS).

[Hidden in reply to Strike26]

i understand. what about all the people, suffering from parkinson's disease in the UK, who are on ropinirole? there must be alternative generics/package sizes that can be delivered.

[Strike26]

That crossed my mind-as the dose would be much higher for P. And the symptoms would return immediately if it stopped- I’ll ask my doc as to alternatives.

[SueJohnson in reply to Strike26]

One alternative is the neupro patch and another alternative although it is probably in short supply too is pramipexole. Divide the ropinirole amount by 4 to get the equivalent dose.

[ChrisColumbus]

There are lot of medicine shortages in the UK at present, in antibiotics, HRT meds and cold & flu remedies in particular. I can't find anything recent about Ropinirole specifically. While it's likely that Brexit is an issue it's not the only problem as there have also been local reports of medicine shortages in Ireland, France and the US.

[twizzle303]

Hiya my thyroid meds are taking longer, I use Lloyd online and they tell me they are awaiting delivery. I always order 14-30 days before I run out but its still a worry. Good luck for yours arriving soon.

[Strike26 in reply to twizzle303]

I did get mine after 5 days and immediately back to normal- most days pretty good, a few not. I will definitely be following your example and re-ordering 14 days before I need them. Having full on RLS has really affected my hip and back - slowly recovering I think. Not a nice experience.

[Hoochybaby]

hi regarding supply of drugs I have not been able to source zopiclone for weeks now no pharmacy has them in? Cause due to Brexit! The supply comes from Germany and we are no longer in the EU. Johnson and his mob didn’t tel us it would be a problem!

[Hidden]

Not sure where to post this but ive not had any medication reviews since 2019, is this normal after heart attack in 2018, I'm on a lots of meds and they just repeat the prescriptions every month altering the review dates,