The Medicines Safety Agency (ANSM) wanted to reassure on Tuesday about the tensions in the supply of amoxicillin, a very common antibiotic that has been in short supply in pharmacies since this autumn, but whose supply “is currently ongoing among wholesalers-distributors.” .
“Currently, boxes of amoxicillin and amoxicillin-clavulanic acid are being delivered to wholesale distributors, who will guarantee equitable distribution of them throughout the territory,” writes the ANSM in a press release.
“If amoxicillin-based medications are not available, it is always possible for pharmacists to directly supply a compound preparation (prepared for a specific patient, according to a doctor’s prescription, editor’s note) suitable for children under 12 years of age,” he emphasizes. the ANSM.
A letter to better guarantee distribution
In mid-December, the agency found that the situation regarding the availability of amoxicillin continued to deteriorate, particularly in drinkable forms used in pediatrics.
It was then confirmed, after a meeting with the actors in the drug chain (industrialists, warehouses, wholesalers-distributors, community and hospital pharmacists), that the manufacturers released their stocks and immediately made them available to wholesale distributors for distribution. equitably in pharmacies throughout the country.
At the request of the government, stakeholders committed, in a non-binding letter signed in November, to ensure better distribution of antibiotics to ensure access to patients this winter.
Last winter, France experienced a particularly serious shortage of certain medications, including amoxicillin, which had been very difficult to find for many weeks, especially in its version for children.
Source: BFM TV
