The United States Pharmacopeia (USP) has published its 2026 Annual Drug Shortages Report, revealing that drug shortages in the US are becoming increasingly prolonged, while upstream supply chain vulnerabilities continue to pose significant risks to medicine availability.
According to the report, the average drug shortage now lasts more than five years.
Five years is the longest duration recorded since USP began tracking the issue.
This marks a substantial increase from approximately two years in 2019 and 4.3 years in 2024.
For the first time, the report incorporates data on Key Starting Materials (KSMs), providing an end-to-end view of pharmaceutical supply chains through USP's Medicine Supply Map.
The findings indicate that supply concentration often begins much earlier in the manufacturing process than previously recognised.
Nearly half of drugs currently in shortage have at least one KSM that is manufactured exclusively in a single country, most commonly China or India.
USP said this concentration increases exposure to disruptions caused by geopolitical tensions, natural disasters, policy changes and other external events.
The report also found that product discontinuations reached their highest level since 2019, rising by 60% between 2024 and 2025.
At the same time, prices for discontinued medicines declined, suggesting a link between low market prices and manufacturers exiting production.
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