Topline
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced Wednesday it will allow states to access Tamiflu doses from the national stockpile to meet surging demand, as the U.S. faces a severe and early flu season.
Boxes of Tamiflu are displayed at Jack’s Pharmacy November 28, 2007 in San Anselmo, California.
Key Facts
States can request Tamiflu doses from the Strategic National Stockpile and federal staff will evaluate the requests to ensure “states, territories, and tribes receive the assistance they need without affecting our nation’s preparedness for a future pandemic flu,” HHS said Wednesday.
The antiviral drug Tamiflu helps treat the flu by preventing the virus from multiplying and by reducing patients’ symptoms, according to the Food and Drug Administration.
Tamiflu, which comes in both liquid and capsule forms, can be used by patients ages 2 weeks and older to treat the flu and can even be taken to prevent a flu infection in anyone older than one year, though the FDA noted it is not a substitute for vaccination.
Demand for the drug has surged amid one of the worst flu seasons in years, with at least 15 million cases, 150,000 hospitalizations and 9,300 deaths from the virus so far, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The virus is also surging earlier than expected: The flu season in the U.S. typically peaks in February, but data from the CDC shows hospitalizations have ramped up much faster than in past years and may be beginning to slow down.
Tangent
This year’s earlier-than-usual flu season, an increase of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) cases and a jump in Covid hospitalizations—deemed by some media outlets as “the tripledemic”—has put more pressure on the U.S. healthcare system. RSV cases this year have set a record for the most pediatric hospitalizations ever recorded for the illness, and Covid-19 cases and hospitalizations continue to steadily rise, though they remain far below the pandemic’s peak.
Key Background
Along with Tamiflu and other antivirals, drugs like pain relievers and fever reducers are in high demand amid rising Covid-19, RSV and flu cases, and some stores have put purchasing limits in place, particularly for children’s pain-relief medicine. Officials said Wednesday releasing Tamiflu doses from the national stockpile will help expand treatment access. State stockpiles can also be utilized, Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said.
Further Reading
Here’s Why There Is A Shortage For Children’s Tylenol, Advil And Motrin—And What To Do About It (Forbes)
#BringBackMasks Trends As ‘Tripledemic’ Of Covid-19, RSV, Flu Worsens (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2022/12/21/us-releases-tamiflu-stockpiles-heres-why-demand-is-surging/