A drug shortage is a quality failure with a body count.
Live FDA drug shortage data (openFDA), grouped by status, availability, and therapeutic area. The FDA’s own root-cause analysis puts manufacturing and quality problems at the centre of the shortage crisis — which is why SPEQ treats the shortage list as a quality-system signal, not just a supply-chain one.
By initial FDA posting date. openFDA lists active shortages, so older cohorts thin as entries resolve.
The FDA’s 2019 report Drug Shortages: Root Causes and Potential Solutions found the dominant drivers are not scarcity of raw materials but a lack of incentives to produce, and manufacturing/quality problems that force production to stop. Mature quality systems — the difference a QMM assessment measures — are what keep a line running.
| Drug | Company | Therapeutic area | Availability | Status | Posted |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lidocaine Hydrochloride InjectionInjection | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Anesthesia | Available | Current | 2018-06-13 |
| Remifentanil Hydrochloride InjectionInjection | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Analgesia/Addiction | Available | Current | 2022-06-28 |
| Methotrexate Sodium InjectionInjection | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Rheumatology | Available | Current | 2023-03-13 |
| Lisdexamfetamine Dimesylate CapsuleCapsule | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Psychiatry | Limited | Current | 2023-07-14 |
| Promethazine Hydrochloride InjectionInjection | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Analgesia/Addiction | Available | Current | 2023-11-21 |
| Lisdexamfetamine Dimesylate CapsuleCapsule | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Psychiatry | Limited | Current | 2023-07-14 |
| Cefotaxime Sodium Powder, for SolutionPowder, For Solution | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Anti-Infective | Unavailable | Current | 2015-02-17 |
| Ifosfamide InjectionInjection | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Oncology | Available | Current | 2026-06-12 |
| Valproate Sodium InjectionInjection | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Neurology | Available | Current | 2020-12-30 |
| Promethazine Hydrochloride InjectionInjection | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Analgesia/Addiction | Unavailable | Current | 2023-11-21 |
| Morphine Sulfate InjectionInjection | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Analgesia/Addiction | Available | Current | 2017-11-03 |
| Furosemide Oral SolutionOral Solution | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Cardiovascular | Limited | Current | 2026-03-31 |
| Lisdexamfetamine Dimesylate CapsuleCapsule | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Psychiatry | Limited | Current | 2023-07-14 |
| Lorazepam InjectionInjection | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Neurology | Unavailable | Current | 2018-05-03 |
| Morphine Sulfate InjectionInjection | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Analgesia/Addiction | Available | Current | 2017-11-03 |
| Morphine Sulfate InjectionInjection | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Analgesia/Addiction | Available | Current | 2017-11-03 |
| Methotrexate Sodium InjectionInjection | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Rheumatology | Available | Current | 2023-03-13 |
| Lorazepam InjectionInjection | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Neurology | Unavailable | Current | 2018-09-05 |
| Lorazepam InjectionInjection | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Neurology | Unavailable | Current | 2018-09-05 |
| Morphine Sulfate InjectionInjection | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Analgesia/Addiction | Available | Current | 2017-11-03 |
| Etomidate InjectionInjection | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Anesthesia | Available | Current | 2022-10-05 |
| Promethazine Hydrochloride InjectionInjection | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Analgesia/Addiction | Unavailable | Current | 2023-11-21 |
| Atropine Sulfate InjectionInjection | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Anesthesia | Available | Current | 2023-12-20 |
| Morphine Sulfate InjectionInjection | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Analgesia/Addiction | Available | Current | 2017-11-03 |
| Meperidine Hydrochloride InjectionInjection | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | Analgesia/Addiction | Available | Current | 2025-05-30 |
Data: U.S. FDA openFDA drug/shortages API, which lists activeshortages (Current or To Be Discontinued) — it carries no per-record cause field, so SPEQ makes no root-cause claim on individual drugs; the quality framing above is cited FDA context. openFDA publishes shortage data for drugs only; SPEQ’s cross-industry coverage lives in the recall Explorer(drug, device & food).