Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 24 October 2024 to Question 9576 on Methylphenidate: Shortages, what recent progress her Department has made on improving the supply of methylphenidate in (a) Norfolk and (b) the UK.

We are continuing to work to resolve supply issues, where they remain, for methylphenidate prolonged-release tablets. We are engaging with all suppliers to assess the challenges faced and their actions to address them. We are also directing suppliers to secure additional stocks, expedite deliveries where possible, and review plans to further build capacity to support the continued growth in demand for the short and long-term. We currently expect supply to improve in the United Kingdom throughout the rest of 2024. However, we anticipate supply to be limited for some strengths, and we continue to work with all suppliers to ensure the remaining issues are resolved as soon as possible.

The Department has also worked with specialists to develop advice for National Health Service clinicians on prescribing available alternative brands of methylphenidate prolonged-release tablets, whilst supplies are limited. If this is not possible, advice has also been provided for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) specialists to offer other clinically appropriate and available options, both pharmacological and non-pharmacological, in line with the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence guidance, in order to avoid potentially disruptive breaks in treatment. To improve supply chain resiliency, we are also working with prospective new suppliers of methylphenidate prolonged-release tablets to expand the UK supplier base.

We are supporting an ADHD taskforce that NHS England is establishing to examine ADHD service provision. The taskforce will bring together expertise from across a broad range of sectors, including the NHS, education, and justice, to help provide a joined-up approach in response to concerns around rising demand. In collaboration with NHS England’s national ADHD data improvement plan, we plan to combine modelling for future growth forecasts, which will be shared with industry to improve demand forecasting for ADHD medicines. The Department continually updates a list of currently available and unavailable ADHD products on the Specialist Pharmacy Service website. This helps ensure those involved in the prescribing and dispensing of ADHD medications can make informed decisions with patients. This list is available at the following link:

www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/prescribing-available-medicines-to-treat-adhd