Australia experiencing critical shortage of antidepressants, contraceptives and HRT

Reasons for shortages are often unclear and substitutes, which are not subsidised by PBS, are prohibitively expensive

Australia is experiencing a critical shortage of key drugs including antidepressants, contraceptives and hormone replacement therapies, a situation that experts say highlights systemic problems with medicine supply in the country.

Most of the shortages appear unrelated to coronavirus disruptions, although in the case of the popular antidepressant Prozac, the manufacturer, Eli Lilly, cites unexpected increase in demand" during the crisis. Other manufacturers refuse to detail reasons for the supply problems.