"Do you have cold medicine here?" ... Concerns over stock shortages due to early cold snap

Surge in Demand Due to Flu Outbreak... Some Pharmacies Face Shortage of Cold Medicine Stock
Industry Says Limited Pharmaceutical Companies and Temporary Outbreak Make Factory Expansion Difficult

In March, an official at a pharmacy in Seoul displayed pediatric home treatment kits including fever reducers and cold medicine for children. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Lee Gyehwa] Ms. Lee, a housewife in her 30s, said, "As the weather has gotten colder recently, many people around me have caught colds," adding, "I'm worried that there might be a shortage of cold medicine due to the flu epidemic." She also added, "Some pharmacies have already reported a shortage of cold medicine stock, so I bought various types of cold medicine in advance."

On the 18th, as the first cold wave advisory of this fall was issued and the temperature difference between day and night increased, the number of flu patients is rising. With the growing possibility of a multi-demic (simultaneous outbreak of COVID-19 and respiratory infectious diseases), some voices express concern that the cold medicine shortage seen last March might recur.

Following the flu epidemic advisory issued in September, the number of patients with acute respiratory diseases has also been on the rise recently. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency on the 18th, the influenza (flu) patient rate per 1,000 outpatients in the 41st week of this year (October 2?8) was 7.0, maintaining the 7-level for two consecutive weeks following the previous week (7.1).

Additionally, the number of domestic patients hospitalized due to acute respiratory infectious diseases such as metapneumovirus, respiratory syncytial virus, and rhinovirus increased to 847 in the 38th week (September 11?17), 896 in the 39th week, 992 in the 40th week, and reached 1,000 in the 41st week. This figure is more than double the 471 hospitalized patients during the same period last year.

The demand for cold medicine is expected to increase further this year. As various respiratory infectious diseases spread, more people are visiting pharmacies and hospitals. There is also a possibility of increased demand as health authorities and the medical community predict that respiratory infectious diseases, including the flu, could simultaneously spread with COVID-19 this winter.

According to the pharmaceutical industry, there has been no shortage of cold medicine supply so far. Earlier this year, during the Omicron wave, home treatment became common, leading to a cold medicine shortage in many places. The industry states that it is maximizing factory operations and preparing raw material procurement in anticipation of increased demand.

However, there is also an analysis that the production capacity of cold medicine in the pharmaceutical industry has reached its limit. Since the end of last year through early this year, the industry entered an increased production system due to the surge in cold medicine demand and has maintained it until now. The industry cites the sudden increase in demand as the cause of the cold medicine shortage. There are limited pharmaceutical companies selling cold medicine, and if demand grows beyond supply capacity, shortages are inevitable. It is difficult to expand factories for a temporary epidemic, and even if expansion occurs, immediate operation is not possible.

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety is easing regulations to encourage cold medicine production. It recognizes multiple active ingredients for antipyretic analgesics and lifts the obligation for small packaging of compounded cold medicines. On the 7th, Oh Yu-kyung, the head of the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, said at the National Assembly inspection, regarding the instability of cold medicine supply, "I think we have used all the cards available to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety."