A $21 billion settlement between 46 attorneys general and three pharmaceutical distributors — AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health and McKesson — may be leading to more drug supply issues, The New York Times reported March 13.
The settlement was intended to tweak former allowances and diminish the nation's pile of unnecessary prescription painkillers, which helped fuel the opioid epidemic. This tighter leash didn't just corral opioids, though: Some anxiety, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and addiction medications are now harder to access, according to the Times.
Because the agreement included multiple controlled substances that could become addictive, including muscle relaxants and Xanax, tens of thousands of drug orders have been canceled.
As part of the settlement, these distributors have to set monthly caps to some controlled substances, meaning pharmacies cannot order more of these drugs if their supplier already reached its limit — even if patients come in needing a refill.
Ilisa Bernstein, PharmD, interim CEO of the American Pharmacists Association, told the Times that the new rules, which took effect in July, have led to "havoc" in some pharmacies.
"They have patients coming in to get medication, and they can't have it," Dr. Bernstein said. "It's disrupting patient care."
Cardinal Health and McKesson did not respond to the outlet's requests for comment, but AmerisourceBergen told the Times it is waiting on guidance from the government to block misuse of "these drugs without interfering with good-faith clinical decisions made by doctors."
Read more here.