Health Canada Accelerating Approvals to Ease Drug Shortages

Health Canada announced last week that it will expedite the review of 23 new drug applications (NDAs) in order to ease a growing shortage of medicines, reports Pharma Times.

Federal Health Minister Leona Agukkag said Health Canada hopes to review the drugs within a one-month timeframe instead of the six-month timeframe that reviews normally take.

The problem highlights the unintended consequences of bulk purchasing, remarked a spokesman for Health Canada. Bulk purchasing by the Canadian government has created a highly concentrated market, which means disruptions at almost any facility will create a shortage situation.

The drug shortage situation has grown particularly acute in recent days after a manufacturing facility owned by Sandoz caught fire, halting production at a site responsible for making nearly 90% of all injectable drugs used in Canada.

Read more:

Pharma Times - Canadian drug reviewers "working round the clock"

Regulatory Focus - Canadian Drug Shortages Lead to Calls for Regulation