Shortages
Search for information about a medicine shortage and find out if there is a way to access an alternative product.
A medicine shortage occurs when there is unlikely to be enough of a medicine in Australia for the people who need to take it. Suppliers must report shortages of prescription medicines and a small number of over-the-counter medicines to the TGA.
Each shortage listed on our medicine shortages reports page refers to a single product. There are usually alternative brands, strengths or dose forms of the same medicine available.
You can view our medicine shortage alerts and search the medicine shortage reports database on our website. The information in the database will provide an estimate of how long the shortage will last and may tell you if there is an alternative medicine available. Our page on accessing medicines during a shortage explains more about accessing alternative products.
Find out how we manage a medicine shortage, including information for sponsors on reporting a shortage and supplying alternative products during a shortage.
More information
Latest alerts
- Update: Limited semaglutide (Ozempic) supplyThere remains an increased global demand for semaglutide products which is impacting availability and certainty of supply of Ozempic (semaglutide) in Australia until early 2023.
- Joint statement: Shortage of tenecteplase (Metalyse)Recommendations for clinicians to implement conservation methods
- Shortage of tenecteplase (Metalyse)Boehringer Ingelheim (BI) has advised the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) of a shortage of tenecteplase (Metalyse) injection that is predicted to extend over the next 18 months.
Latest articles
- Joint statement: Supply allocations of intravenous tocilizumab (Actemra) during serious shortageTGA has published a Joint statement on supply allocations of intravenous tocilizumab (Actemra) during serious shortage.
- Changes to the Medicine Shortage Reporting systemWe are improving the Medicine Shortages IT System.
- Children's paracetamol liquid returns to front-of-counter, but supply limits remainPharmacies can return children's paracetamol liquid formulations to front-of-counter, but the one unit limit on sales remains in place