[7] Despite these efforts, an estimated 2 billion people still lack access to essential medicines, with some of the major obstacles being low supply, including shortages of inexpensive drugs.
Following these shortages, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released a report in fall of 2019 with strategies to overcome and mitigate supply issues.
[1] The use of essential medicines lists has resulted in better quality of care and improved management of health resources in the most cost-effective manner.
The lists serve as a baseline for health insurance entities to include or exclude the medication, and modify the dose based on clinical study evidence.
[12] The data supports the need to improve the access and distribution of medication across regions to ensure that the goal of universal health coverage is reached.
[13] Items are chosen as essential medicines based on how common the disease that is being treated, evidence of benefit, the degree of side effects and the cost compared to other options.
[15] The intention of essential medicine lists is to provide appropriate use of treatment and not include medications that have been withdrawn from the market in other countries due to unfavorable benefit-to-harm balance.
[16] Despite many efforts from different countries, some individuals do not have their needs met and have to turn to an alternative plan called the judiciary in order to receive the medications required.
[18] Cost effectiveness is the subject of debate between producers (pharmaceutical companies) and purchasers of drugs (national health services).
[20] Proper access to essential medicine can lower the amount for really expensive treatments and hospitalizations by managing early and effectively.
[23] The intention of creating an EML for children is to improve child survival and provide treatment options for mortality and morbidity causes.
[26] WHO launched a "Make Medicines Child Size" (MMCS) campaign in 2007 with the purpose of creating appropriate regimens and formulations for children based on their weight and age.
Analysis of the EMLc between 2011 and 2019 revealed that most enteral medications were not age-appropriate for children under six years old, necessitating manipulation of the medicine prior to administration.
Consequently, the study emphasizes the urgent need for more comprehensive information and guidelines for selecting and developing age-appropriate essential enteral medicines for pediatric populations.
[28] While the practice of maintaining separate lists for the general population and children under 12 years of age is beneficial in tailoring healthcare interventions, it inadvertently excludes adolescents from the latter category.
[29] Not to mention, it was further discouraged in 2011 when Codeine was removed from WHO essential medicine list for children, causing greater discussion of its use in adults.
The data showed that on average of the 44 essential antibiotic medications, 24 of them were accessible to the population, 5 of them considered on reserve, and 15 of them on WATCH using the AWaRe classification.
[30] Additionally, the use of therapeutic guidelines as a reference for the creation of the WHO Essential Medicine List has been used to provide consistency and alignment of treatment across the nation.
[37] RENAME included medicines that focused on safety, efficacy, and availability of medications, as well as Brazil's health priority of their population.
Challenges such as high prices and poor availability have impacted how citizens are actually able to obtain their medications, despite healthcare being a constitutional right in the country.
[38] The Ministry of Health (MOH) consists of medical and economic experts that are divided into a consult and review group to develop their national medicines list.
[40] However, poor medical supplies and staff with low health investments in implementations have caused people to go to private hospitals and clinics for treatment.