Can more Vyvanse production ease the ADHD drug shortage?

Patients and caregivers have struggled for two years to find stimulant medications such as Adderall, Vyvanse and Concerta to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Some spend hours each month going from pharmacy to pharmacy to find a drug, while others are forced to switch to a different brand or formulation, or go without medication for weeks.

This week the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) announced a potential solution: It is raising the amount of lisdexamfetamine (Vyvanse) that can be produced by US manufacturers this year by nearly 24 per cent to meet demand in the US and abroad.

Vyvanse is an amphetamine that has been approved for use in children and adults with ADHD and has become commonly prescribed after the generic version was introduced last year. According to the DEA, the latest data shows that demand for the drug has been rising globally. But right now every manufacturer of generic Vyvanse listed on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) website is experiencing a shortage.

Many healthcare providers who specialise in treating patients with ADHD said that the DEA’s decision was a positive development but that it was unclear just how much of an effect it might have on the shortage.

“Obviously it’s not going to solve the problem completely,” said Ami Norris-Brilliant, clinical director of the Division of ADHD, Learning Disorders, and Related Disorders at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City. “But I think anything that helps increase drug availability is a good thing.”

It is not the first time that the DEA has increased production quotas for ADHD drugs. Last year it announced a new 2023 limit for methylphenidate, which is used to make drugs such as Ritalin and Concerta, raising the allotted amount by 27 per cent for 2023.

The FDA first declared a nationwide shortage of Adderall in the autumn of 2022. It did not take long before other stimulant medications used to treat ADHD, such as Vyvanse, also became difficult to find.

The shortage is “hugely problematic” for children and their families, Norris-Brilliant said. NYTIMES