Something strange is happening at the hospital. Cheap, common medicines that nurses use every day seem to be constantly in short supply. These are often generic drugs that are less complicated to manufacture, such as dextrose or saline (also known as sugar water or saline).
So what’s going on? As with all areas of health care, the answer is complex.
On today’s program, we discuss why hospitals continue to run out of generic drugs. The stories behind these shortages can tell us a lot about how these medicines are manufactured, bought, sold, and sold. It also shows how these markets can stagnate without proper care.
This episode was hosted by Sally Helm and Alexi Horowitz Ghazi. Produced by Willa Rubin with assistance from James Snead and Sam Yellowhorse Kessler. Editing was done by Martina Castro. Fact checked by Dania Suleman. Planet Money’s executive producer is Alex Goldmark.
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Music: Universal Music Productions — “High Tech Expert” Audio Network — “Sailing Past”, “Star Alignment”
