《TAIPEI TIMES》 Ministry weighs measures to rein in drug hoarding

By Shelley Shan / Staff reporter

Pharmacies might soon have to ask customers to limit their purchase of fever medication, as the Ministry of Health and Welfare yesterday said it is considering such a policy amid a drug shortage triggered by a massive COVID-19 outbreak in China.

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Minister of Health and Welfare Hsueh Jui-yuan （薛瑞元） told the legislature’s Social Welfare and Environmental Hygiene Committee that it is paramount to ensure that Taiwan’s medical institutions have “sufficient amounts of medicines.”

Lawmaker urged Hsueh to take immediate action to tackle a severe shortage of paracetamol and other acetaminophen-based painkillers with fever-reducing properties that are widely used in Taiwan.

The lawmakers said they were concerned that the shortage would spill over to other fever drugs and painkillers if the government does not stop people from hoarding those drugs.

“Our No. 1 mission is to ensure that Taiwan’s medical institutions have sufficient amounts of medicines... We have asked pharmaceutical firms to first meet the demand from hospitals to ensure that they are not short of drugs for people seeking medical attention,” Hsueh said.

Hsueh said that the ministry is considering requiring pharmacies to ask their customers not to buy too many packages of the drugs at once.

However, the policy would be different from a cap on purchases, he added.

“We hope pharmacists across the country will help persuade customers not to buy too much over-the-counter antipyretics at a time,” he said. “We will closely monitor medical drug supply to determine whether stronger actions should be taken to control [the market]. Control measures will be lifted when supply becomes stable again.”

Hsueh said that the ministry still needs to discuss details with the Federation of Taiwan Pharmacists Associations, such as the recommended maximum amount for each purchase and when the measures should be implemented.

Aside from regulating purchases of acetaminophen, the ministry might also implement measures regarding other painkillers, such as ibuprofen, Hsueh said.

Food and Drug Administration Director Wu Shou-mei （吳秀梅） said that Taiwan has approximately 54 million courses of acetaminophen and 910,000 courses of ibuprofen.

The supply of chemicals could sustain local drugmakers’ production up to 10.6 months and five months respectively, Wu said.

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES