Public information on medicine shortages

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) publishes information on medicine shortages that affect or are likely to affect more than one European Union (EU) country, where it has assessed the shortage and provided recommendations to patients and healthcare professionals.
Human Regulatory and procedural guidance Medicine shortages Medicines

EMA also publishes information on critical shortages monitored at EU level by the Medicine Shortages Single Point of Contact (SPOC) Working Party.

EMA monitors critical medicine shortages that might lead to a crisis situation, and is involved in mitigating them, by working with the EU Member States and European Commission. For more information, see:

EMA's responsibilities in this area stem from Regulation on EMA’s Reinforced Role (Regulation (EU) 2022/123).

The Agency's shortages catalogue below contains information on supply shortages assessed by EMA. 

The minutes of the Medicine Shortages Single Point of Contact (SPOC) Working Party meetings are also available:

National competent authorities typically handle shortages of nationally authorised products, particularly if they do not affect other countries. For information on specific shortages, you can check the national registers of shortages or visit the website of your national competent authority

If you are having difficulty obtaining a medicine that has been prescribed to you, talk to your doctor or pharmacist.

EMA shortages catalogue

You can find information on ongoing and resolved shortages of human medicines assessed by EMA under:

Communication to healthcare professionals

On this website you can find two types of communications to healthcare professionals that include information on medicine shortages:

  • Direct healthcare professional communications (DHCPs)
  • Medicine shortage communications (MSCs)

Find medicine shortage communications via the link below:

Find direct health professional communications via the search result list linked below:

National registers of shortages

The table below contains the national registers of shortages for human and veterinary medicines.

Please note that the information in these national registers may not be available in English.

EU Member State National register

Austrian flag

 Austria

belgium.gif

 Belgium

Bulgarian flag

 Bulgaria

  • Human medicines: www.bda.bg
  • Veterinary medicines: no online register available

croatia.gif

 Croatia

  • Human medicines: www.halmed.hr
  • Veterinary medicines: no online register available

cyprus.gif

 Cyprus

  • No online registers available for human and veterinary medicines

czechrepublic.gif

 Czechia

  • Human medicines: www.sukl.cz
  • Veterinary medicines: no online register available

denmark.gif

 Denmark

Estonian flag

 Estonia

finland.gif

 Finland

  • Human and veterinary medicines share the same online register: www.fimea.fi

france.gif

 France

germany.gif

 Germany

greece.gif

 Greece

  • Human medicines: www.eof.gr
  • Veterinary medicines: no online register available

hungary.gif

 Hungary

  • Human medicines: www.ogyei.gov.hu
  • Veterinary medicines: no online register available

ireland.gif

 Ireland

italy.gif

 Italy

  • Human medicines: www.aifa.gov.it
  • Veterinary medicines: no online register available

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 Latvia

  • Human medicines: www.zva.gov.lv
  • Veterinary medicines: no online register available

lithuania.gif

 Lithuania

  • Human medicines: vvkt.lt
  • Veterinary medicines: no online register available

luxembourg.gif

 Luxembourg

  • No online registers available for human and veterinary medicines

malta.gif

 Malta

  • No online registers available for human and veterinary medicines

netherlands.gif

 Netherlands

  • Human medicines (shortages of selected medicines): www.cbg-meb.nl
  • Veterinary medicines: no online register available

poland.gif

 Poland

  • Human medicines: no online register available
  • Veterinary medicines: www.wetgiw.gov.pl

portugal.gif

 Portugal

  • Human medicines: www.infarmed.pt
  • Veterinary medicines: no online register available

romania.gif

 Romania

  • Human medicines: www.anm.ro
  • Veterinary medicines: no online register available

slovakia.gif

 Slovakia

  • Human medicines: www.sukl.sk
  • Veterinary medicines: no online register available

slovenia.gif

 Slovenia

spain.gif

 Spain

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 Sweden

EEA Member State

iceland.jpg

 Iceland

liechtenstein.jpg

 Liechtenstein

  • No online registers available for human and veterinary medicines

norway.jpg

 Norway

You can also find medicine shortage communication for healthcare professionals below by selecting the expandable panel below (via the downward arrow):

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