PFIZER stated that over 30 drugs, including fentanyl injections and anaesthetic lidocaine, may see supply disruption after a tornado destroyed a warehouse at its Rocky Mount, North Carolina, plant last week, Yahoo News has reported.
The company sent a letter late last week to its US hospital customers saying it had identified around 64 different formulations or dosages of those more than 30 drugs that were produced at the plant, that may experience continued or new supply disruptions.
The company has placed limits on how much supply of those drugs its customers can buy.
It said the list was "based on Pfizer market share and inventory levels of less than three months across our Pfizer distribution centers and the wholesale chain".
"The tornado that struck the site destroyed the warehouse, but production facilities there don't seem to have suffered major damage," said CEO Albert Bourla.
The Rocky Mount plant is one of the largest factories for sterile injectable medicines in the world.
Nearly 25% of Pfizer's sterile injectables used in US hospitals are produced there, according to the company's website.
Michael Ganio, Senior Director of Pharmacy Practice and Quality for the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, said many of the drugs on Pfizer's list are already facing shortages.
"It's very likely hospitals and health systems have already begun managing those shortages or have strategies in place to manage them," he said.
"So hopefully, there will be minimal impact."
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