Virginia patients impacted by nationwide Adderall shortage, doctors say

The Food and Drug Administration added Adderall to its drug shortage website last month, and doctors say Virginia patients being treated for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder are feeling the impact.

The leading reasons for the shortage, which primarily affects immediate-release Adderall and similar generic versions, are manufacturing delays and insufficient supplies to meet market demands, according to the FDA.

Virginia patients with ADHD have “absolutely” been impacted by the shortage, said Dr. Dorothy O’Keefe, outpatient clinic director for the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry in the Virginia Treatment Center for Children.

Dr. Kara Beatty, an adult psychiatrist with her own private practice and the president of the Psychiatric Society of Virginia, said her office is “getting phone calls left and right” from patients who say their Adderall prescriptions can’t be filled.