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<p>There are around 14,000 licensed medicines, and the overwhelming majority are in
good supply. However, the medicine supply chain is highly regulated, complex and global,
and supply disruption is a common issue which affects countries all around the world.</p><p>The
Department’s medicine Discontinuations and Shortages portal has been collecting notifications
from suppliers of potential supply issues since October 2020, and shows that there
were approximately:</p><p>- 90 supply issue notifications in January 2021;</p><p>-
110 supply issue notifications in January 2022;</p><p>- 170 supply issue notifications
in January 2023; and</p><p>- 160 supply issue notifications in January 2024.</p><p>Although
reporting does vary each month, annual notifications have remained fairly stable at
approximately 1,600 supply issue notifications in 2022 and 2023. It is important to
note that not all supply issue notifications will lead to a medicine shortage.</p>
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