Shortage of ADHD Medications Affecting Families Around the US
Around the US, people are clambering to fill prescriptions for Adderrall and its generic equivalents because of a shortage of the active ingredients used to make them. The scarcity has occurred due to quotas imposed by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in an attempt to rein in abuse of these stimulants. In an attempt to manage the number of people with the potential to develop an addiction to Adderrall and its equivalents, parents who truly need the drug sometimes have to go to as many as 15 different pharmacies trying to fill their child’s prescription. This is causing a huge increase in stress in families that are already dealing with their fair share due to their child’s ADHD diagnosis.
Why the DEA Feels the Need to Keep Control Over ADHD Drugs
Another group suffering from this insufficiency of supply are women aged 26 to 39. Women in this age range have seen a 750-percent increase in Adderrall use over the last 10 years. In this same period, there has been a huge jump in the number of prescriptions from just over three-quarters of a million to more than five million each year. Some contribute this astonishing jump to an increase in population and better diagnostic criteria, while others worry there may be a trend among busy mothers to rely on these stimulants to accomplish everything women nowadays try to juggle in a day.
While this may be occurring in isolated pockets, the group most responsible for abuse of ADHD medications is the college crowd. They exploit the effects of Adderrall in order to pull all-nighters for exams and even more unfortunately so they can keep their weight down or drink to excess and not fall asleep. These tricks are now trickling down to the high school crowd as well according to a recent survey from the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
The DEA Claims There Is No Shortage of Adderrall
The DEA has shot back at drug manufacturers who claim their arbitrary quotas are causing unnecessary shortages of much needed medications by saying there is not an Adderrall shortage. They would be correct on that point. Since there is only a certain amount of medication available, the drug companies decide to make more of the more expensive name brand rather than the generic version. So currently, the generic brands are in short supply. This leaves many in need of ADHD medication left with only the expensive option they cannot afford.
Do you think the DEA should be able to control the number of prescription drugs that are allowed to be produced if they are unwilling to change it when the demand for legitimate prescriptions are unable to be met? Let us know your thoughts below.