Southern Californians running to their local pharmacy to pick up some cold and flu medicine are coming across an unwelcome sight, empty shelves.
KTLA reporter Annie Rose Ramos traveled to several stores in Burbank searching for children’s cold remedies but was unsuccessful.
An employee at one pharmacy said they hadn’t had Children’s Tylenol in weeks and weren’t expecting another shipment anytime soon.
Even a check on Amazon showed a two-week wait for Children’s Tylenol deliveries.
The shortage comes as the Southland is being hit by a trio of viruses, including the flu, COVID-19 and RSV.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has classified California as having “high” flu levels.
Shortages in fever reducers like Motrin and Tylenol have health officials concerned.
“It’s very hard to find a substitute for a fever reducer,” UCLA Health pediatrician Anu Seshadri told the LAist.
In Los Angeles County, health officials are also keeping an eye on a growing number of COVID-19 cases.
“These numbers clearly demonstrate that COVID is still with us,” Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said during a recent news conference.
“Given both the increases in hospitalizations and the lack of certainty in the winter trajectory for COVID-19. Continuing some common sense mitigation strategies that we know work to limit transmission and illness, including masking and being up to date on vaccines and boosters, remains a very sensible approach,” she said.
Ferrer suggested it would take a sharp increase in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations before another mask mandate would be considered.
Still, the public was urged to stay up to date on booster shots and wash their hands frequently.