CVS and Walgreens Are Limiting Purchases of Children’s Tylenol

Amid an ongoing shortage, some stores are limiting sales of Children’s Tylenol and other over-the-counter painkillers for kids

As RSV, flu, and COVID-19 converge to create a surge in illnesses—especially for kids—there’s been a growing shortage of over-the-counter children’s pain reliever medications, like Children’s Tylenol, Motrin, and Advil, for months. Now, as the shortage shows no signs of letting up, some stores are starting to limit how many bottles parents can buy.

CVS is limiting both in-person and online purchases to two children’s pain relief products per customer.

Walgreens has limited online purchases to six products per customer but does not currently have limits on in-person purchases.

And Rite Aid just announced that while it doesn’t have in-person store limits at this time, online orders of 4-ounce, grape-flavored Children’s Tylenol are limited to five per customer.

“Due to increased demand and various supplier challenges, over-the-counter pediatric fever-reducing products are seeing constraint across the country,” Walgreens said in a statement, adding that the limits have been put in place “in an effort to help support availability and avoid excess purchases.” A statement from CVS said purchase limits are intended to “ensure equitable access” for all parents who need these products for their kids.

There’s still no timeline on when the OTC pain reliever shortage might let up, but some experts are now starting to worry that it could last until spring. And while weekly RSV hospitalization rates are finally beginning to trend downward, the current flu season remains more severe than usual, and COVID cases are beginning to climb nationwide. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other public health agencies have been issuing warnings that, as families gather for the holidays, these respiratory illnesses are likely to spread at even faster rates.

John Beckner, a pharmacist and senior director of strategic initiatives for the National Community Pharmacists Association, told CNN that he’s heard of many pharmacies in the association complaining of Children’s Tylenol and other painkillers being hard to find right now.

“My thought is, we’re really not going to see a lessening of this until we get through the crux of the flu season, and that’s going to be in early to late spring,” he said. “It’s definitely a team effort, and pharmacists are really doing yeoman’s work right now to try to help take care of their patients.”