[ FDA DRUG SHORTAGES TRACKER ]

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.

1,000
Active shortages tracked
844
Current
155
To be discontinued
214
Flagged unavailable
21% flagged unavailable · latest update 2026-07-27 · source: openFDA drug/shortages
NEW SHORTAGES POSTED · MONTHLY

By initial FDA posting date. openFDA lists active shortages, so older cohorts thin as entries resolve.

ACTIVE SHORTAGES BY THERAPEUTIC CATEGORY · TOP 10
WHY THIS SITS UNDER QUALITY, NOT LOGISTICS

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.

The economics of quality →FDA QMM framework →
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1,166 matching shortages
DrugCompanyTherapeutic areaAvailabilityStatusPosted
Dopamine Hydrochloride InjectionInjectionHospira, Inc., a Pfizer CompanyCardiovascularAvailableCurrent2017-11-06
Bupivacaine Hydrochloride InjectionInjectionHospira, Inc., a Pfizer CompanyAnesthesiaAvailableCurrent2018-02-20
Ketorolac Tromethamine InjectionInjectionHospira, Inc., a Pfizer CompanyAnalgesia/AddictionUnavailableCurrent2018-03-26
Hydromorphone Hydrochloride InjectionInjectionHospira, Inc., a Pfizer CompanyAnalgesia/AddictionAvailableCurrent2017-10-31
Lisdexamfetamine Dimesylate Tablet, ChewableTablet, ChewableSun Pharmaceutical Industries, Inc.PsychiatryAvailableCurrent2023-07-14
Sterile Water InjectionInjectionHospira, Inc., a Pfizer CompanyOtherAvailableCurrent2021-11-23
Hydromorphone Hydrochloride SuppositorySuppositoryPadagis US LLCAnalgesia/Addiction—To Be Discontinued2026-07-23
Lorazepam InjectionInjectionHospira, Inc., a Pfizer CompanyNeurologyLimitedCurrent2018-05-03
Heparin Sodium InjectionInjectionHospira, Inc., a Pfizer CompanyHematologyAvailableCurrent2017-11-14
Fentanyl Citrate InjectionInjectionHospira, Inc., a Pfizer CompanyAnalgesia/AddictionAvailableCurrent2012-01-01
Sodium Acetate InjectionInjectionHospira, Inc., a Pfizer CompanyEndocrinology/MetabolismAvailableCurrent2016-02-03
Hydromorphone Hydrochloride InjectionInjectionHospira, Inc., a Pfizer CompanyAnalgesia/AddictionLimitedCurrent2017-11-01
Morphine Sulfate InjectionInjectionHospira, Inc., a Pfizer CompanyAnalgesia/AddictionUnavailableCurrent2017-10-31
Morphine Sulfate InjectionInjectionHospira, Inc., a Pfizer CompanyAnalgesia/AddictionUnavailableCurrent2017-10-31
Lisdexamfetamine Dimesylate CapsuleCapsuleSun Pharmaceutical Industries, Inc.PsychiatryLimitedCurrent2023-07-14
Sterile Water InjectionInjectionHospira, Inc., a Pfizer CompanyOtherAvailableCurrent2021-11-23
Ketorolac Tromethamine InjectionInjectionGland Pharma LimitedAnalgesia/AddictionAvailableCurrent2018-06-06
Methylprednisolone Acetate InjectionInjectionPfizer Inc.RheumatologyLimitedCurrent2021-12-15
Methylprednisolone Acetate InjectionInjectionPfizer Inc.RheumatologyLimitedCurrent2021-12-15
Sodium Bicarbonate InjectionInjectionExela Pharma Sciences, LLCEndocrinology/MetabolismAvailableCurrent2017-07-24
Ketorolac Tromethamine InjectionInjectionGland Pharma LimitedAnalgesia/AddictionAvailableCurrent2018-03-23
Quinapril/Hydrochlorothiazide TabletTabletPfizer Inc.CardiovascularUnavailableCurrent2023-01-19
Carboplatin InjectionInjectionGland Pharma LimitedOncologyLimitedCurrent2023-04-28
Carboplatin InjectionInjectionGland Pharma LimitedOncologyLimitedCurrent2023-04-28
Etomidate InjectionInjectionGland Pharma LimitedAnesthesiaAvailableCurrent2022-10-05
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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).