Congressional Bills Aim to Tackle Rising Drug and Healthcare Provider Shortages

As of November 2025, over 287 drugs are in short supply across the U.S., with nearly half of them being life-saving medications for cancer, heart failure, and severe infections. Hospitals are rationing doses. Pharmacies are turning patients away. And doctors are forced to use less effective alternatives - all because the system that supplies these medicines is breaking down. Congress is finally trying to fix it, but the clock is ticking.

The Two Bills Trying to Stop the Crisis

Two major bills have been introduced in the 119th Congress to directly tackle the growing crisis. The first is the Drug Shortage Prevention Act of 2025 (S.2665), introduced by Senator Amy Klobuchar in August. This bill doesn’t ask for more money or new agencies. It asks manufacturers to speak up sooner.

Right now, drug companies aren’t required to tell the FDA until a shortage is already happening - often after production lines have stalled or raw materials ran out. S.2665 changes that. It would force manufacturers to notify the FDA as soon as they see a spike in demand, a supply chain disruption, or a planned production halt for any drug on the critical list. The goal? Give regulators time to step in - find alternate suppliers, fast-track approvals, or warn hospitals before patients are left without treatment.

The second bill, Health Care Provider Shortage Minimization Act of 2025 (H.R.1160), takes a different approach. While S.2665 targets medicines, H.R.1160 targets people. There are currently 122 million Americans living in areas with not enough primary care doctors, nurses, or pharmacists. This bill is meant to fix that - but here’s the problem: no one knows how. The full text hasn’t been released. No committee has been assigned. No cost estimate exists. All we have is the title.

Why One Bill Has More Clarity Than the Other

S.2665 is detailed in its intent. It’s tied to the existing Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. It would build on the FDA’s Drug Shortage Portal - a tool already used by hospitals to track availability. Experts agree: early warning systems work. In 2022, a voluntary pilot program between the FDA and three major generic drugmakers reduced critical shortages by 32% over 18 months. S.2665 would make that mandatory.

H.R.1160? Nothing. No sponsors listed beyond the bill number. No public hearings. No press releases. Even the American Medical Association, which has been screaming about workforce shortages for years, says only 12% of its members even knew the bill existed. That’s not a policy - it’s a placeholder.

The Shutdown That Stopped Everything

The biggest threat to both bills isn’t opposition. It’s silence. Since October 1, 2025, the U.S. government has been shut down - the longest in history. Over 800,000 federal workers are furloughed. The FDA can’t process new applications. The CDC can’t update data. The Drug Shortage Portal? It’s glitching. No one’s there to fix it.

Even if S.2665 passes tomorrow, it needs FDA staff to implement it. Who’s going to train manufacturers? Who’s going to monitor compliance? Who’s going to respond when a company says, “We’re seeing a 40% jump in demand for epinephrine”? Right now, no one. The shutdown isn’t just delaying legislation - it’s erasing the capacity to act on it.

Who’s Really Affected?

It’s not just hospitals. It’s you. A 68-year-old with congestive heart failure who can’t get furosemide? Her doctor switches her to a less effective diuretic - and her swelling gets worse. A child with leukemia who needs vincristine? The hospital has to split doses. A diabetic who can’t get insulin because the distributor ran out? They’re forced to ration their last vial.

According to the American Hospital Association, 98% of U.S. hospitals reported at least one critical drug shortage in the third quarter of 2025. The same report found that 43% of those shortages lasted over 90 days. That’s not a glitch. That’s a pattern. And it’s getting worse. Generic drug manufacturers - who produce 90% of the nation’s medicines - say 63% of shortages come from manufacturing delays, not lack of demand. That’s why S.2665’s notification rule matters: if you know a plant is about to shut down for maintenance, you can plan ahead.

Why This Isn’t Just About Money

Some think the answer is more funding. But the problem isn’t lack of cash - it’s lack of control. The federal budget deficit hit $1.74 trillion in the last fiscal year. Congress is debating cutting $7.9 billion from foreign aid and $1.1 billion from public media. But they won’t touch the $45 million a year needed to run S.2665 properly.

That’s not a funding issue. That’s a priority issue. The Drug Shortage Prevention Act doesn’t need a new bureaucracy. It needs a simple rule: tell us when you’re running low. That’s it. The technology exists. The data systems exist. The FDA already tracks shortages. All it needs is a legal nudge.

H.R.1160? It could be transformative - if it had details. Imagine a program that pays medical students to work in shortage areas for five years in exchange for tuition forgiveness. Or expands telehealth licensing across state lines. Or funds nurse practitioner training in rural counties. Those are real solutions. But without a bill text, they’re just ideas.

What Happens If Nothing Changes?

The American Association of Medical Colleges projects a shortage of 124,000 physicians by 2034. If we don’t fix the pipeline now, we’ll be facing this crisis on two fronts: not enough drugs, and not enough people to give them.

Right now, the only thing moving faster than the shortage list is the political gridlock. The proposed continuing resolution to keep the government open through January 30, 2026, doesn’t mention drug shortages once. Not once. The Senate Republicans who wrote it didn’t see it as a priority. Neither did the House.

Without action, the next time a child needs an antibiotic and the pharmacy has none - or a cancer patient’s chemo gets delayed - the blame won’t fall on a manufacturer. It won’t fall on the FDA. It’ll fall on Congress. And the public will remember who did nothing while people suffered.

What Can You Do?

You can’t pass a bill. But you can make your voice heard. Call your representative. Ask: “Where is H.R.1160? What’s in it? Why isn’t it moving?” Demand to know what’s in S.2665 - because if you can’t read the bill, you can’t support it. Share hospital stories. Post on social media. Tell your doctor you’re worried. The more pressure there is, the harder it is for Congress to ignore.

This isn’t about politics. It’s about survival. And right now, the system is failing.