Podcasts Government On The Record Drug Shortages During COVID-19 Patient Surge

Drug Shortages During COVID-19 Patient Surge

Published: April 14, 2020, 2:03 p.m.

Maryland hospitals caring for a surge of patients with Covid-19 are not just scrounging for enough equipment, like ventilators--they’re also hunting for the essential drugs they need to attach patients to those breathing machines. Sedatives, painkillers, asthma drugs and many other medicines--all scarce. Dr. Yoram Unguru, a doctor who treats kids with cancer at Sinai Hospital, often struggles to find the medicines his young patients need. As chair of Sinai’s ethics committee, now he’s helping find workarounds for a range of sparse drugs for Covid-19 patients.