Teva quantifies generics shortages in new report

Vulnerabilities in the supply chain are increasing the risk of shortages, and restricting the number of therapeutic options available to the patients.

According to data from Teva:

69 per cent of generics marketed in 2022 have fewer than two suppliers each
26 per cent of the generics previously available in 2012, have since disappeared from the European market.

In 10 years to 2023, some 7 per cent of the generic products on the Union List of Critical Medicines disappeared, according to the generics giant. Its case studies show that the number of generic products starts to decline 3-4 years after the launch of new generic medicine. Low-volume products, such as generic oral liquid antibiotic products (e.g. paediatric syrups) are particularly vulnerable: over the decade to 2023, 21 per cent disappeared from the product segment.

Among the solutions, Teva cites:

Support innovation Developing a rewarding and ambitious incentive framework, that stimulates the development of new medicines.
Stimulate access Warranting legal clarity and predictability for generic medicines developers, to ensure a day-1 launch after the expiry of exclusivity.
Safeguarding essential medicines sustainability Introducing multi-criteria, multi-winner tenders and novel pricing practices, while optimizing, simplifying and digitalizing the regulatory framework.

Supply Shortages