A new poll by the National Pharmacy Association (NPA) found that a whopping 86% of UK pharmacies were unable to supply the pain relief medicine to their patients over a week
A shortage of Aspirin is sending widespread panic through UK pharmacies, a new poll by the National Pharmacy Association (NPA) has found. A whopping 86% of pharmacies surveyed said they were unable to supply the pain relief medicine to their patients over a week.
Patients with a history of strokes, heart disease, chronic kidney diseases and diabetes require regular doses of dispersible Aspirin. Pharmacies told the NPA they have been rationing their limited supply of the drug for patients with the most acute heart conditions and those in need of emergency prescriptions.
Some pharmacies have even stopped selling Aspirin over the counter. Between January 2025 to October 2025 there were 50.9 million items of Aspirin prescribed in the UK, making it one of the most commonly prescribed drugs.
The poll also found the price of Aspirin has skyrocketed from 18p for a packet of Aspirin 75mg dispersible tablets last year to £3.90 this month. The NHS will only reimburse a pharmacy £2.18 a packet, meaning a pharmacy will lose £1.72 each time it is dispensed.
Olivier Picard, Chair of the National Pharmacy Association said: “We’re concerned about reports of pharmacies being unable to order in stocks of Aspirin and the implications this might have for the patients they serve.
“For those pharmacies that can get hold of supply, costs will far exceed what they will be reimbursed by the NHS, yet more signs of a fundamentally broken pharmacy contract in desperate need of reform by the government.
“We’ve long called for pharmacists to be able to make substitutions where a medicine is not in stock and it is safe to supply an alternative.
“The status quo is not only frustrating for patients, it is also dangerous.
“It is madness to send someone back to their GP to get a prescription changed when a safe alternative is in stock. It risks a patient either delaying taking vital medication or forgoing it altogether, which poses a clear risk to patient safety.”
Fiona Loud, Policy Director at Kidney Care UK, said: “Cardiovascular diseases are closely linked to chronic kidney disease (CKD) so some people with early stages of CKD are prescribed low dose Aspirin to help reduce risk of strokes and heart attack. “This is often prescribed under supervision because there can be an increased risk of bleeding so the benefits of the medication have to be assessed against potential risks. Where there are potential medicine shortages affecting commonly prescribed items like Aspirin we believe that pharmacists should have leeway to substitute commonly prescribed medications. “There is precedent for this, having seen protocols put in place when the UK left the EU and during the Covid-19 pandemic, both occasions when the supply of certain medicines was at risk. “It is also important that alongside this, there is clear communication from primary care around the medications people are taking, and why any changes are being applied, along with the opportunity for people to ask any questions or raise any concerns they may have.”
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