Title: Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on global and local trends in drug supply and utilization
Speakers: Katie Suda, Mina Tadrous

Description: This session will cover the impact of the pandemic so far using global data from over 70 countries and look to see different policy options available to formulary managers. This information will be vital as the pandemic prolongs and future drug supply shocks. 

On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak as a pandemic. Due to COVID-19, governments implemented interim public health measures to limit the spread of coronavirus disease. Such measures have contributed to a disruption of global supply lines and exposed vulnerabilities in the global pharmaceutical supply chain. 

Due to the potential serious respiratory effects of COVID-19 on those who are infected, there was also an increase in the global demand for certain drugs used in critical care which led to significant strain and shortage of supply of essential medications.