Sandoz, Civica RX partner to stem shortage of generics

Sandoz and Civica Rx announced plans to collaborate on manufacturing and distribution of various critical injectable generic medicines. The effort is intended to help the healthcare industry reduce supply shortages, and to ensure providers in acute care settings can continue to deliver optimal patient care.

Under the five-year agreement, Sandoz is slated to supply six injectable medicines widely used at Civica’s 1,200 member hospitals in the US, to help ensure continued access to the medications. The list of drugs involved includes antibiotics, acid reducers, blood thinners, blood pressure regulators and medicines required in the operating room, with the initial supply expected to begin shipping to Civica later this year.

Carol Lynch, president of Sandoz, said the lack of access to generic medications at critical times can create a host of problems.

“Frequent supply shortages of critical generic medicines result in additional pressure for hospitals and their staff and often lead to sub-optimal patient care. Our partnership with Civica is delivering on a shared purpose to help ensure patient access to critical, high-quality medicines for years to come​,” she said.

The challenge of maintaining access to important generic medications is one commonly encountered at US care centers. In a survey of 700-plus hospital pharmacy managers conducted in 2018, 70% of respondents indicated that said that, on at least 50 occasions in the prior year, they were unable to provide hospitals with medicines needed to treat their patients because of shortages.

Collaborations such as the one between Sandoz and Civica Rx are designed to help better predict and meet supply requirements for those medicines in order to sustainably deliver them to customers and patients.

Martin VanTrieste, Civica Rx president, said the collaboration will lead to better preparation.

"With Sandoz by our side, we will be able to stabilize the supply of more vital medicines used in hospitals daily and in times of crisis. We are proud to partner with Sandoz to ensure doctors, nurses and pharmacists have the medicines they need for essential patient care​,” he commented.

Civica is a non-profit organization that works to make generic medicines available and affordable to its hospital members. Its membership currently includes more than 50 health systems, representing 1,200 hospitals and serving more than 30% of all licensed US hospital beds.