Zoloft is in short supply as anxious Americans reach for antidepressants during the pandemic

• As millions of anxious American look for mental health resources, supplies of America's most popular antidepressant are running low.
• The FDA said that Zoloft, or the generic sertraline, is in short supply because of increased demand.
• According to Bloomberg, a record-setting 4.9 million people got Zoloft prescriptions in March, the most ever in the US.

Zoloft is one of America's most popular antidepressants, and it's now in short supply because of the psychological toll of the pandemic, according to Bloomberg.

The pandemic has taken a psychological toll on many people, and recent Census Bureau data showed a third of Americans are experiencing symptoms of anxiety and depression, which is almost double the amount of Americans reporting those symptoms in 2014.

Now the FDA says that sertraline, sold under the brand name Zoloft, is becoming a rare commodity.

According to Bloomberg, a record-setting 4.9 million people got Zoloft prescriptions in March, the most ever in the US. This was an increase of 12% from last year.

The prescription-only medication is used to treat depression, panic disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and a number of other mental illnesses. It works by increasing the amount of serotonin, a chemical that works as a natural mood stabilizer, that goes to the brain.

Companies that produce generic sertraline aren't able to get enough ingredients needed to make the drug

According to the FDA website, sertraline producer Accord Healthcare says it is dealing with a shortage because it does not have enough of the drug's active pharmaceutical ingredients to create it. Without those ingredients, sertraline cannot be manufactured.

Both Lupin Ltd and Pfizer, the manufacturer of name-brand Zoloft, also said that some of its products were going to be in short supply.

InvaGen Pharmaceuticals has some versions of its product on backorder, while Aurobindo Pharma says it has enough supply to handle current and future demand increases.

Other alternatives to Zoloft include Prozac, Celexa, or Lexapro, which are part of the same class of medications.