Drug Shortages Creating Strain for Health Providers

A record-breaking shortage of generic drugs for cancer and other serious ailments has hospitals and physicians scrambling to find alternative treatments. FDA reported 178 drug shortages in 2010, up from 157 in 2009 and 55 five years ago. Anesthesiology and oncology have been among the hardest hit by drug shortages.

• "Drug Shortages Distress Hospitals" (Dooren, Wall Street Journal, 2/1).
• "Drug Shortages Forcing Some Risky Alternatives" (Rubin, USA Today, 2/2).