Pfizer penicillin supply shortage not affecting Canada, for now

Pfizer Inc. is experiencing a supply shortage of penicillin in the U.S. amidst increased demand, but the pharmaceutical company said Canada should be unaffected by the lack of supply, for now.

Pfizer Inc. is experiencing a supply shortage of penicillin in the U.S. amidst increased demand, but the pharmaceutical company said Canada should be unaffected by the lack of supply, for now.

The supply shortage is due to an increase in demand as syphilis infection rates rise “as well as competitive shortages,” Pfizer said in a letter to customers on June 12.

In an email to CTVNews.ca, Christina Antoniou, director affairs at Pfizer Canada, said Friday they are monitoring the situation “closely” and it “is not currently impacting Canada."

In the letter to U.S. customers, the pharmaceutical and biotechnology company said selected items like Bicillin L-A and Bicillin C-R prefilled syringes – Pfizer's brand name of injectable penicillin – will not be available in the U.S. until further notice.

Penicillin is an antibiotic used to treat various types of illnesses, including pneumonia and sexually transmitted infections such as syphilis.

Over the last five years, syphilis has made a global resurgence, and Canada has been an outlier among wealthy nations in its rate increase with a 13-fold over five years, according to Health Canada.

There were 2,677 cases of congenital syphilis in the U.S. in 2021 for a population of 332 million, according to preliminary CDC data. Canada had 96 cases for a population of 38 million, according to Health Canada.