Adderall Backorder (Page 92) (Top voted first)

I take generic Adderall 20 mg for narcolepsy and there is not one local pharmacy that has it in stock. I have never had this problem before. The pharmacies are saying that it's on backorder from the manufacturer. Is anyone else having problems getting their scripts filled?

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Re: Bryce (# 1866)

@Bryce: Perhaps it's useful for people on this thread to zoom in on your question (no intention to annoy anyone here, let's break this down in the interest of a "reality check"):

a) the question is asking countless anonymous strangers to weigh in on whether you can "negotiate" with your licensed medical professional in an attempt to increase your monthly dosage of a CII medication by 33%.

b) you didn't include your doctor's reason for denying your original request for a 50% increase.

c) unless specifically stated, we should all assume that people on here aren't trained or licensed mental health or pharmaceutical professionals.

That said, after 13 yrs on this medication, I've learned the following about prescribing doctors' MANY considerations:
a) what other meds is the patient taking?
b) age and weight of patient
c) comorbidities and other health considerations of patient: ie, cardiovascular risk factors, blood pressure, any and all DSM V diagnoses, nutritional deficiencies effecting cognition and energy metabolism such as Vitamin D, alcohol/caffeine consumption, chronic conditions with associated brain fog such as fibromyalgia and ME, inappropriate affect wrt irritability, degrees of avolition and impulsivity and more
d) is the patient having regularly scheduled urine testing? (To Confirm that patient isn't selling a CII)

There are so many MORE considerations that a licensed medical professional needs to make.... Including, is there data driven evidence of the EFFICACY of a 33% increase?! Frankly, patients think that more is better. Scientific data shows that higher dosing can have NEGATIVE results on ADHD symptoms management! It's true! Optimal dose achieved by incremental,5mg increases and when a too high dose is taken patients show MORE ADHD symptoms and fatigue.

90 mg a day may be optimal for a patient... But a SMALL percentage of patients in the USA Will vs given that dosage (usually w/narcolepsy, MS, brain injury or a genetic condition, no cardiovascular risk factors, etc). Iow, 90mg is uncommon And asking for a 50% monthly dosage increase= red flag because there is no data driven evidence that a 50% increase has therapeutic value. Honestly, 9 of 10 doctors would turn that down IMHO. Being sincere here. It's a Big ask!

Adderall works to increase norepinephrine and dopamine. If 60mg isn't doing the job, many ***Psychiatrists *** will look to Wellbutrin or Strattera, which are reuptake inhibitors for dopamine and norepinephrine. Not pushing more of the CII, especially since more Adderall isn't necessarily therapeutically effective or medically safe for most people.

Google it ... The more your g.i. tract is acidic, below 7ph, the LESS bioavailable is amphetamine, meaning you're serum levels are lower, and your urine has all that medication. Higher ph levels result in HIGHER bioavailability, HIGHER plasma amphetamine levels. This isn't a medical suggestion: anyone who takes their Adderall 30 min after Tums, Rolaids, antacids will scientifically get a bigger bang because they won't be peeing away the meds. Taking an additional antacid 30 min after, even more so. Taking 500mg L-Tyrosine with Adderall may also increase the efficacy of the medication. Google it

So ... the answer is not always that MORE Adderall is better and WELL INTENTIONED ethical doctors know more than patients about this. AND, asking almost any MD for a 50% dosage increase of a cII is usually a hard no.

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Drug shortfalls could last throughout the year:

abcnews.go.com/Health/amid-shortage-generic-adderall-frustration-builds-demand-increases/story

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I have been flagged by my pharmacy for calling too much to see if they have my adderall in stock. What does this mean exactly? How serious is it? What can I do? Thank you

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Re: KD (# 1878)

I have never heard of that. So the person that answers the phone takes the time to pull up your profile each time you call and make a comment? How many times before you are flagged ?

It sounds like they are tired of people calling looking for Adderall.

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Re: BlessedLady (# 1877)

Excellent link wrt Quality issues - thank you. This link is excellent because within the Opinion, there are countless embedded links to that show his sources... His sources are major media publications, published authors etc. So there is a treasure of authoritative info. SADLY there remains no strategy, or solution. But the COMPLEXITY of the issue is being exposed as more than TEVA supply shortage scapegoating. There are many more considerations, such as the correcting of decades of inequities around diagnosis and treatment (racial, age and gender biases resulted in countless under diagnosing for decades; the DEA not being the right agency to make public health decisions about pharmaceutical treatment for scientifically validated and complex neurological conditions.

"The cruel irony of America's neglected Adderall shortage

There's no agreed upon cause of the nationwide backlog on most ADHD medications. But policymakers have been slow to act."

https:/­/­www.msnbc.com/­opinion/­msnbc-opinion/­adderall-shortage-2023-adhd-policy-rcna76851

"Did Generic Adderall Shortage Cause Amphetamine Withdrawal?

The FDA lists a generic Adderall shortage. Some people complain about generic Adderall quality and report symptoms of amphetamine withdrawal."

https:/­/­www.peoplespharmacy.com/­articles/­will-adderall-shortage-cause-amphetamine-withdrawal

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Re: KD (# 1878)

Sounds like a pharmacy specific thing, probably. You'd have to ask them what it means, but it's unlikely to have any effect on your ability to fill at other pharmacies.

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I don’t know why it’s still showing that they’re on back order but I just had my 20 mg brand-name tablets special ordered for me and they came in two business days. What I want to know, is why the 20 mg brand-name tablet is dome shaped, and the 30 mg tablet is flat?? Seems like the 20mg is slightly smaller too and MUCH harder to break in half? I’m assuming there’s a higher concentration of MCC in the 20mg, but the dome vs. flat is a little perplexing to me? Any thoughts? Btw Brand name works SOOOOO much better than Generic, and thank Goodness my medi-cal covers the BRAND NAME, which is a $1,049 prescription MSRP!??

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Re: Davemp88 (# 1884)

Glad you got your medication in a timely fashion! Hopefully we all see improvement on our next fills (my last one at the beginning of the month was the worst since August of last year)!

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Re: tim (# 1885)

1) If you don’t mind me asking, what state do you live in?
2) Did you try requesting the brand name tablets, providing your insurance covers them? (It can be a $10.49.99 prescription ??!)
3) Did you have any insight as to why the 20mg brand-name tablets are dome-shaped and circular and the 30mg brand-name tablets are flat and circular?

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Re: EasyE (# 1888)

I had a good experience with Vyvanse before my insurance at the time refused to pay for it so I switched to Adderall.

I have to fill again this weekend... this thread being so dead gave me some hope.

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Re: EasyE (# 1888)

Appreciate hearing that Vyvanse is an effective alternative for you? What dosage conversion did your doctor use? Some sources calculate to double the dosage. 30 Adderall is 70 Vyvanse. Etc

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Re: tim (# 1887)

Yeah, they are shaped like peach colored footballs. b973 on one side and 20 on the other. I take them. Teva brand.

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Re: Rcma (# 1889)

He started me off on 40mg Vyvanse which isn't an equivalent dose but it's doing its job. I'm sure he started me off on 40mg just because it's my first time taking it

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Re: tim (# 1893)

Still hard time in north Mississippi/Memphis area. I asked the pharmacist about the 30 IRs again. No they have not received any in months. There goes the estimated recovery date again. Still no 20 IRs, and they sold all their 10 IRs. They did however have the 15 IRs again. I had to settle on the 15 mg tabs again for the for the past few months.

I have never seen this type before until I started getting them a few months ago at the Walmart pharmacy. They are pink, flat, rounded ends, but very oblong. They aren't like the round or oval ones I see all the time. They are thin, narrow, and REALLY long. They work okay, and they don't work as fast either. They take an hour or hour and a half to work. Normally, I'm stumbling around trying to figure out where I am and who I am as soon as I open my eyes. In about 30 minutes, a normal 30 mg IR will help me be aware, be awake a little, be able to function, and organize my thoughts for the 20 things I have to do before I can get in the shower to get ready for work. These weird pink, long, thin, and narrow rectangles, I can take 2 (15mg x 2) and go back to sleep for about an hour. Then, I can stumble around for about 10 or 15 more minutes before I can become more aware, get my thoughts organized, and concentrate on what I need to do for my long drawn out days. There's my life story in the mornings. Lol

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Re: Ken (# 1894)

What is the imprint on the pil? Or the ndc# on the bottle? Sounds horrible. Try taking a few Tums or Rolaids when you take them, and 500mg of L-Tyrosine.

"Ask your doctor before using calcium carbonate together with amphetamine. Using these medications together can increase the absorption of amphetamine and may increase its effects."

'supplementation with tyrosine can help improve cognitive function and memory"

Check out the research and decide if it's worthwhile

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Re: Rcma (# 1895)

Hey, I look at the pill and the imprint is E343 on one side and nothing on the other. On the bottle, it also says EPI which I assume is Epic Pharma, LLC.

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Re: Ken (# 1896)

Scroll down to INGREDIENTS AND APPEARANCE at the link below. It is the last one. The details of what the tablet should look like are there.

NDC: 42806-343

Packager: Epic Pharma LLC

https://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/drugInfo.cfm?setid=1757e132-061d-4773-89ed-fdc77f69008f

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Re: Ken (# 1896)

There is a Reddit thread on this brand. Positive and negative experiences. Not sure where they're manufactured but a USA company.

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Re: Rcma (# 1898)

Just this morning, I woke up at 5am and took 2 15mgs, my normal dosage. I laid back down as my alarm was set for 5:30am. Next thing I knew, it was 6:45am and running late for work... Ugh. My phone said the alarm went off, and it's not on silent. Albeit I am worn out from work, I do not see how I did not hear the alarm. I woke up very tired nearly 2 hours after I took them. They work sometimes decently, but this morning not at all. I will look for reddit posts.

Yes, I saw the pictures of them before. They look like them, but in my opinion, they are narrower snd appear longer. Sometimes pics can be squashed up a bit. They are really thin, and they take no effort at all to break in half.

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My update from N. Florida. My doctor switched me to vyvanse bc of the shortage. I don't like it as much and it's expensive but it is certainly better than nothing at all.

I do know someone 2 hours away who was able to fill for 20mg adderall xr this week.

My thoughts on vyvanse for anyone interested. It's feels pretty similar to XR adderall. I much prefer being able to spread my doses throughout the day so my doc agreed to let me go with 30mg vyvanse twice a day instead of increasing my dose once a day. I had to get a pre-auth from my insurance because my insurance has a qty limit on vy. My doctor was not hopeful that they would approve it, and we agreed on a backup plan at my appt just in case, but they did and I'm able to get 60 qty each month for the same co-pay for the next year. It's something and was worth the small headache(figurative.)

From what I've seen on reddit recently it seems the shortages are becoming more regionally concentrated but they shift around too.

Haven't seen anything new from the DEA with one major exception. It appears because of the massive amount of public comments received they have submitted to pause the end to telehealth prescribing of C2s. So, not great news imo.

https://www.dea.gov/documents/2023/2023-05/2023-05-03/statement-dea-administrator-anne-milgram-covid-19-telemedicine

Take care everyone.

PS thx for your continued updates Tim!

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