Drug shortages: what’s on the government’s ‘critical’ list

This Tuesday, May 16, 2023, François Braun announced before the National Assembly that he had received a first list of “critical” drugs. For several months, France has been experiencing major drug supply problems. In 2022, nearly 3,000 drugs experienced strong tensions, compared to 405 in 2016. To avoid endangering the population, on April 3, the government announced that it was preparing this “critical” list. What is it about ?

In the context of supply tensions on certain remedies, the government had promised to take concrete measures. The first was to prepare a “critical” list, comprising nearly 281 drugs considered “strategic in industrial and health terms” (MSIS).

MSISs are used for anesthesia, resuscitation and oncology. Others make it possible to respond to major health crises. If these drugs were to be in short supply, the health consequences could be dramatic.

According to a study by the France Assos Santé observatory, 37% of people faced a shortage in 2023. To prevent these essential medicines from being affected, the government wants to “better study the production chain of each medicine and put in place concrete measures to avoid ruptures.” The MSIS list is a first step in this direction.

This Tuesday, May 16, 2023, the Context newspaper unveiled the first drugs on the “critical” list. Discover in our slideshow which references are concerned.