ISTOCK, SLOBOThe U.S. may face drug shortages within the next two or three weeks due to post-hurricane declines in drug production in Puerto Rico, Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb told Reuters Tuesday (October 10).
Ten percent of US drugs originate from the US territory, according to an FDA statement by Gottlieb. Most major drug companies have production facilities in Puerto Rico, according to Reuters.
Three weeks after the hurricane, 16 percent of the island’s electricity has been restored. Power shortages, combined with “difficulty obtaining materials used in the manufacturing process” stand in the way of pharmaceutical production returning to normal in Puerto Rico, Reuters reports.
“A lot of companies say they’re online, but they basically have one of five lines running at 20 percent or 80 percent or 50 percent,” Gottlieb tells Reuters. “They are not manufacturing at full capacity. They are manufacturing well short of that.”
“It’s unclear when they are going to be able to bring that ...
