Why is Eltroxin not available? This is the only brand that is effective for me wife, so Mercury Farma what gives?

[Toderro45]

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK]

Amdipharm Mercury has been failing to deliver Eltroxin to the pharmacists for some time now. The main Thyroid UK site news item is here:

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/news.h...

However, Amdipharm Mercury assure us, repeatedly, that Mercury Pharma Levothyroxine is absolutely identical to Eltroxin except for packaging.

This blog explains that there are only three suppliers of levothyroxine in the UK:

thyroiduk.healthunlocked.co...

Rod

[cein in reply to helvella]

Had my two monthly perscription of medication delivered last Wednesday and its still packaged as Goldshield Eltroxin ... even though I was expecting this delivery to be Mercury Pharma as my GP requested a change to Mercury Pharma to see if I felt any better on a different brand .... but this request to the pharmacy was prior to finding out it is now supposed to be exactly the same thing ?

[kazatthemadhouse]

I too was gutted about this as i have been on Eltroxin for years. I went to my GP & got her to prescribe Levoxthyroxine (Mercury) - The Mercury has to be specified.. As Rod says, this is meant to be exactly the same. I got mine from Asda & the pharmacist said this is what they usually stock, but can't guarantee to always have it.

[RedApple Administrator]

The repackaging due to rebranding was exactly my thoughts right from the start of this. The clue was in the fact that they had continued to use the old Goldshield pink boxes for around a year following their name change to MPharma, even though the 'generic' eventually appeared in the new livery.

[Toderro45]

Many thanks for the replies and info. Like RedApple, Eltoxin is the only brand that my wife finds tolerable. Thanks for the 'Mercury' info will relay that to our Drs' because we too will have to have the prescription changed. I am not sure I believe the two are 'exactly' the same, if all this is a rebrand and repackaging effort just to up the price...well, it's not as if they don't make enough as it is. I know the cost of research and development are high, but they do make that up and more on the initial sale price to the NHS for the first few years.

Once again, thanks to all and good luck.

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK in reply to Toderro45]

We have had quite a number of sceptical people - that is fully understood. But I do sincerely believe they are 100% identical, and made by the same factory.

If you look closely you would see that the actual letters/numbers debossed on the tablets themselves are identical. And on the Patient Information Leaflets, the exact same Product Licence number appears. The MHRA would not allow that if they were different, I am sure.

Levothyroxine is such an old medicine, I don't think they can claim any product development costs.

Rod