FDA Drug Shortage List

The FDA Drug Shortage List is the agency’s public database of drugs in short supply. Each entry names the product, the presentations affected, the reason where a manufacturer has disclosed it, and the current status — in shortage, resolved, or discontinued. It is searchable by anyone, and it updates continuously.

For GLP-1 medications this list did something unusual: it opened a legal door. FDA notes that compounders may prepare compounded versions of a drug on the shortage list if the compounded drug meets certain conditions detailed in federal law. That provision is the reason compounded semaglutide and tirzepatide became a mass market rather than a niche. When a product comes off the list, that pathway narrows again.

This makes the list worth watching if you take a compounded product, because your supply is downstream of a regulatory status you can check yourself in about a minute. A resolved shortage does not instantly end every compounded prescription — there are transition timelines and separate rules for different compounder categories — but it changes the ground.

The confusion worth flagging is between a shortage and a backorder at your pharmacy. Your pharmacy being out of a strength this week is a local supply problem. A shortage listing is a national determination about a manufacturer’s ability to meet demand. They often coincide, but only the second one has legal consequences for compounding.

If you are on a compounded GLP-1, ask your provider what happens to your prescription and your price if the shortage status changes, and whether they will transition you to the branded product or a different dose. Ask your pharmacy whether a temporary out-of-stock can be solved by a different pen strength. Our price movement tracker and transition guide cover the options.