Shortages

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. 

A medical device supply disruption or shortage can occur due to issues with raw materials, natural disasters or manufacturing. We follow up on reports of serious disruptions or shortages, and work to help minimise the impact. 

Find out how we manage a medicine shortage, including information for sponsors on reporting a shortage and supplying alternative products during a shortage. Understand how we help manage medical device supply disruptions and what you should do.