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Shortages of medical products in OECD countries – including essential medicines and medical devices – were common prior to COVID‑19. The pandemic put immense strain on already stretched supply chains, as a result of both unprecedented levels of demand and widespread bottlenecks in supply. It has become clear that despite countries’ efforts to curb medical product shortages, both routinely and in times of severe crisis, urgent action is needed.
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Reliable medical supply chains are a cornerstone of resilient health systems. Supply chains, in the context of this report, refer to the flows of goods and services needed from production to distribution, and ultimately to final consumption (or use) of a medical product – medicine or medical device – by patients, health professionals or healthcare institutions. Each product supply chain is unique, as products are often made up of many different components sourced and produced across different sites and countries and involving many stakeholders. A supply chain failure occurs when supply cannot meet demand for a product marketed in a given country. Shortages of medicines were common and increasing in frequency prior to the COVID‑19 pandemic, the latter generating specific challenges for a range of medical products. Medical product shortages can have major implications on health and societies – e.g. delayed treatment and diagnoses, strain on already stretched healthcare systems, increased healthcare costs, loss of productivity, to name a few. Their proliferation has drawn policy attention and prompted calls for action to strengthen medical supply chains – both routinely and in anticipation of the next health crisis.
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This chapter takes stock of the vulnerabilities of medicine and medical device supply chains, making a case for the importance of enhancing their resilience. First, it provides insight into the complexity and variability of the organisation of these global supply chains and presents trade statistics. It then explores the growing issue of medical product shortages, which pre‑dated the COVID‑19 pandemic, including potential causes of disruption. Finally, the chapter discusses additional strain that is placed on supply chains in times of severe crises.
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This chapter reviews the landscape of policies that could be implemented routinely, as a foundation, to enhance medical product supply chain security. First, it examines initiatives aimed at improving the ability to anticipate or avert risks of shortages, such as enhancing visibility across the whole supply chain. It then looks into policies that aim to mitigate or reduce exposure to these risks, including addressing the root causes of shortages and encouraging flexibility and agility into the system.
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This chapter focuses on additional actions needed to anticipate and mitigate the impact of severe crises on medical supply chains. These actions go above and beyond the foundational supply security policies already discussed in the previous chapter. First, this chapter explores how to be better prepared for faster and more agile responses to crises. It then describes mechanisms to mitigate the risk of shortages and ensure equitable access to existing and newly developed technologies that populations need. This chapter has a focus on co‑operation among governments and collaboration with the private sector.
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