Why doesn’t Australia make more medicines? Wouldn’t that fix drug shortages?
- Written by Peter Coomber, PhD Candidate, Pharmaceutical Supply Chains, The University of Queensland

About 400 medicines are in short supply in Australia. Of these, about 30 are categorised as critical. These are ones with a life-threatening or serious impact on patients, and with no readily available substitutes.
Since 2024, there has been a nationwide shortage of sterile fluid. This continues to affect health care across...
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