Federal Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos announced Friday morning that the million bottles of painkillers for children expected from abroad are starting to arrive in pharmacies, and that an additional 500,000 bottles have been ordered and are expected over the next few weeks.
Minister Duclos indicated Friday morning that another delivery of pediatric painkillers from Australia is also being sent to hospitals, and that the national production of pediatric painkillers has increased.
Parents across Canada have been scrambling for weeks to manage fever and pain in their little ones as cases of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and seasonal flu soar in a context of severe shortages of pediatric acetaminophen and ibuprofen.
The federal Department of Health said last week that the one million units imported will be nearly identical to drugs licensed in Canada, typically sold under the brand names Tylenol and Advil.
“In some places, the units are already on the shelves. At other locations, it might take regarding a day longer, Duclos said Friday morning. We anticipate that within the next week the availability will be quite visible on pharmacy shelves across the country. »
The minister said that in addition to emergency imports, domestic production is increasing to meet demand, noting that more than 1.1 million units of children’s Advil were manufactured by producer Haleon in November alone. for the Canadian market.
The Canadian Pharmacists Association has confirmed to The Canadian Press that new shipments had started to arrive and she expects the products to be on pharmacy shelves over the next few days and into next week.
Dr Theresa Tam, Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer, said the COVID-19, RSV and influenza virus continue to circulate at high levels. Although RSV activity appears to have stabilized, Dr. Tam expects it will still remain elevated over the coming weeks.
Separately, there is a “sharp increase” in influenza activity, affecting an unusually high number of children and adolescents, she said.
Children’s hospitals across Canada are reporting a “sharp increase” in seasonal flu-related hospitalizations among children 16 and younger, Dr. Tam added.
There is no vaccine for RSV, but Dr. Tam urged Canadians to get their seasonal flu shot and stay up to date on their COVID-19 vaccinations, as well as take other infection control precautions such as staying home when sick, wearing a mask and washing hands.
The Government of Quebec announced on Friday that the influenza vaccine is now offered free of charge to all residentsregardless of their age or condition.
This dispatch has been produced with the financial assistance of the Canadian Medical Association.
