UK pharmacists report shortages of strep A antibiotics

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Pharmacists are reporting UK-wide shortages of the antibiotics used to treat strep A, despite the health secretary insisting that the government is “not aware” of a problem.

Demand for penicillin and amoxicillin has increased in recent days as the number of cases of strep A has risen among children in schools. Independent pharmacies say they cannot replenish stocks of the antibiotics because wholesalers say there is no availability.

The health secretary, Steve Barclay, told Times Radio on Wednesday that officials were “not aware of any shortages” and that medicine manufacturers were “required to notify us if there are supply issues, and we have not been notified by them of that”.

The chief executive of the Association of Independent Multiple Pharmacies, Leyla Hannbeck, said pharmacists across the country were reporting that they could not restock many types of antibiotics and were dealing with angry customers who she said had been misled by the health secretary.

“The government can say what they want but we are on the frontline and we know what’s happening,” she said. “I want to make it very clear the frustration among healthcare professionals because we don’t want to let our patients down, we have people coming in, parents, we just need to have better planning. Our hands are very tied, the government has to act now.”

She said she had received reports of patients visiting 12 pharmacies to try to find one of the antibiotics used to treat strep A.

Hannbeck said there was a broader systemic problem of regular drugs shortages, exemplified by the HRT shortage earlier in the year.

“We constantly find ourselves in situations like this where as soon as the demand goes up we cannot get the supply we need. It’s becoming a norm now and it’s very difficult for healthcare professionals on the frontline to manage this, especially when the government says there is supply – they should just say we’re looking into making sure pharmacies are getting it.”

She said pharmacies had repeatedly asked the Department of Health and Social Care to bring wholesalers and manufacturers together around a table to discuss how to prevent future shortages, but had been rebuffed.

Her understanding is that manufacturers blame raw materials bottlenecks due to coronavirus lockdowns in east Asia for the shortages.

Dr Andrew Hill, a drugs expert at Liverpool University, said amoxicillin was in shortage worldwide, with health authorities in France, Spain, US, Canada and Australia all reporting lack of supply, after “an increased demand for this drug, given recent waves of different infections, mainly in children”.

Strep A is a common infection in children and most cases are mild or asymptomatic, although it can cause scarlet fever, strep throat, and bacteria can get into the bloodstream and lungs, causing sepsis.

Antibiotic treatment is usually prescribed only in more serious cases owing to concerns around antibiotic resistance. However, recent guidance has asked GPs to be especially vigilant for strep A, which may mean they are more likely to prescribe antibiotics.

Barclay said that in areas where there had been a surge in demand, there were “well-established procedures in terms of moving stock around between our wholesale depots”.

He said: “We have a dedicated team permanently in the department who do this day in, day out, and they’ve reassured me – I checked with them again last night, knowing that I was coming out on the media this morning – and they said they’re not aware of any shortages, but sometimes obviously you get the peaks of demand in a particular area and stock has moved around accordingly.”