As of January 2026, more than 280 drugs are still in short supply across the U.S., and nearly half of them are life-saving medications. Hospitals are rationing insulin. Cancer patients are waiting weeks for chemotherapy. Antibiotics are running out in emergency rooms. This isn’t a temporary glitch - it’s a system failure. And for the first time in years, Congress is trying to fix it with two specific bills: Drug Shortage Prevention Act of 2025 (S.2665) and the Health Care Provider Shortage Minimization Act of 2025 (H.R.1160).
What S.2665 Actually Does
S.2665 isn’t about spending money. It’s about forcing drug makers to speak up before it’s too late. Right now, manufacturers can wait until a shortage is already happening before telling the FDA. By then, it’s often too late to ramp up production or find alternatives. The bill requires companies to notify the FDA as soon as they see a spike in demand for a critical drug - think heart medications, dialysis solutions, or IV antibiotics.
The goal? Give the FDA time to step in. Maybe they can fast-track approval for a backup supplier. Maybe they can help coordinate production shifts between factories. Maybe they can warn hospitals before the shelves go empty. But here’s the catch: the bill doesn’t say what counts as a "critical drug." It doesn’t say how soon manufacturers must report. It doesn’t say what happens if they don’t. Those details are still missing. The full text hasn’t been released yet, and without it, even experts can’t say if this will work.
What we do know is that 63% of current shortages come from manufacturing delays, according to the Association for Accessible Medicines. That means if companies are forced to flag trouble early, it could cut the number of shortages in half. But the FDA hasn’t been able to monitor this properly. Since October 2025, the government shutdown has furloughed 800,000 federal workers - including nearly every FDA staffer who tracks drug supplies. The agency’s online Drug Shortage Portal? Half its functions are down. So even if S.2665 passes, there’s no one left to run it.
H.R.1160: The Missing Piece
If S.2665 is about drugs, H.R.1160 is about people. The bill’s full name - Health Care Provider Shortage Minimization Act - suggests it’s trying to fix the lack of doctors, nurses, and pharmacists. And it’s needed. More than 122 million Americans live in areas where there aren’t enough primary care providers. Rural hospitals are closing. ERs are staffed with temporary workers who don’t know the patients. And in 87% of practices, physicians say drug shortages make their job harder - because they can’t prescribe what they need, even if they have the staff to give it.
But here’s the problem: no one knows what H.R.1160 actually says. The House website lists only the title. No sponsors. No committee. No text. Not even a summary. LegiScan, the most reliable congressional tracking site, shows nothing beyond the bill number. The American Medical Association surveyed its members in September 2025 and found that only 12% even knew the bill existed. Meanwhile, the American Association of Medical Colleges predicts a shortage of 124,000 physicians by 2034. Without a clear plan - loan forgiveness? faster licensing? more residency slots? - H.R.1160 is just a name on a list.
The Shutdown That Stopped Everything
The government shutdown that began on October 1, 2025, is the longest in U.S. history. It’s now in its 95th day. No paychecks. No new legislation. No agency updates. The FDA, CDC, and HRSA - all agencies that track shortages - are running on skeleton crews. The Congressional Budget Office estimates the shutdown is costing the economy $1.5 billion every single day. That’s not just lost productivity. It’s lost lives.
Meanwhile, Congress is debating whether to cut foreign aid by $7.9 billion or block senators from suing over phone records. Not one of those debates mentions insulin, epinephrine, or chemotherapy. The continuing resolution passed by Senate Republicans on November 10, 2025, extends funding through January 30, 2026 - but includes zero language about drug or provider shortages. Representative Don Beyer called it "a betrayal of public health." And he’s not alone.
What Hospitals Are Seeing
The American Hospital Association surveyed 1,200 hospitals in Q3 2025. The result? 98% had at least one critical drug shortage. One hospital in Ohio had to delay 47 cancer treatments because of a lack of vincristine. A pediatric clinic in Texas switched to a less effective antibiotic because the first-line drug was unavailable. A dialysis center in Florida started using a more expensive alternative - and billed patients extra, because insurance wouldn’t cover it.
These aren’t hypotheticals. These are real people waiting for treatment. And the FDA’s own data shows that 47% of the 287 drugs in shortage are classified as "critical" - meaning there’s no safe substitute. When you run out of a drug like phenytoin (for seizures) or heparin (for blood clots), you don’t have options. You have risks.
Will These Bills Fix Anything?
Maybe. But only if three things happen.
- The shutdown ends - and fast. Without staff, no bill means anything.
- The full text of S.2665 and H.R.1160 is made public - so experts can evaluate whether they’re workable.
- There’s actual funding - not just rules. S.2665 needs $45 million a year to train FDA staff and upgrade systems. H.R.1160 needs billions to expand medical training. Neither has a budget line.
Right now, both bills are stuck in committee. No votes. No hearings. No public discussion. They’re political placeholders - symbols of concern, not solutions. And if the shutdown lasts until January 30, 2026, and no new funding bill passes, these bills will die. Not because they’re bad. But because Congress didn’t act before it was too late.
What You Can Do
If you’re a patient, a caregiver, or a healthcare worker, you’re not powerless. Call your representative. Ask them: "Where is S.2665? What’s in H.R.1160? When will we get answers?" Share stories of drug shortages on social media. Tag your senators. The American Medical Association says 87% of doctors are affected - but most patients don’t know that. When people start asking, Congress listens.
Right now, the system is broken. The bills are a start. But without action - real, urgent, funded action - they’ll just become footnotes in a history book about what went wrong.
Peyton Feuer
January 5, 2026 AT 10:23man i just heard my cousin’s nurse say they’re giving half-doses of chemo now… no joke. this isn’t politics, this is people dying because no one’s talking about it.
Dee Humprey
January 6, 2026 AT 11:4698% of hospitals reporting shortages? That’s not a crisis-it’s a war zone. And we’re all just scrolling past it like it’s a TikTok ad. 🤕
John Wilmerding
January 7, 2026 AT 17:28While S.2665 introduces a necessary framework for early notification of potential shortages, its efficacy remains contingent upon robust implementation protocols. Absent statutory definitions of 'critical drug,' mandatory reporting timelines, and enforceable penalties for noncompliance, the bill risks becoming symbolic legislation. Furthermore, the operational capacity of the FDA is severely compromised by the ongoing shutdown, rendering even well-intentioned statutes inert without adequate staffing and technological infrastructure. The absence of appropriated funding for system upgrades and personnel training undermines the bill’s foundational premise. Legislative intent must be matched with fiscal and administrative commitment.
Joseph Snow
January 7, 2026 AT 22:55Let’s be real-this is all a distraction. The real reason drugs are short? The FDA is owned by Big Pharma. They want shortages so they can jack up prices. S.2665? Just another way to make small manufacturers go bankrupt so the big boys can monopolize. And H.R.1160? They’re trying to get more doctors so they can keep prescribing the same overpriced crap. The shutdown? Probably staged. You think they’d let the country collapse over $7.9 billion in foreign aid? Wake up.