Supplies of HRT products will be “in a better position” by next month, a minister has said as new measures to tackle widespread shortages were announced. Women’s health minister Maria Caulfield said the Government was working closely with manufacturers to address the ongoing issues, which have seen thousands of menopausal women struggling to get their hands on key medication.
Pharmacists have now been given greater freedoms to offer women alternative hormone replacement therapy products to relieve their symptoms if their normal HRT is out of stock. Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Ms Caulfield said: “Manufacturers say to us that, by June, they should be in a better position in terms of supply.
“The number one reason why we’re kind of in this position is we’re almost a victim of our own success, is the sheer demand for HRT products. We’ve seen a 38% increase, which is absolutely welcomed, and that’s because women feel confident to ask for HRT now when they’re at the GPs and GPs feel more confident in prescribing it, so we want that to continue.”
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On Saturday, the Government announced that its HRT Supply Taskforce had agreed to implement further Serious Shortage Protocols (SSPs) to temporarily allow pharmacists greater freedoms to choose alternative HRT products. SSPs had already been introduced in April to limit the dispensing of Oestrogel, Ovestin and Premique Low Dose to three months’ supply.
The two new further SSPs are for Lenzetto transdermal spray and Sandrena gel, which will also be put on a three-month supply. Under the rules, all of these items can generally be substituted for transdermal patches.
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