Analgesics in the US

2020 IMPACT

Advil sales stifled by conflicting reports about ibuprofen use during the COVID-19 pandemic

Early in the COVID-19 outbreak, a recommendation by French doctors against the use of ibuprofen medication raised the alarm across the world in terms of its safety in treating COVID-19 symptoms. The World Health Organization followed up and briefly issued a recommendation for paracetamol, known in the US as acetaminophen, over ibuprofen, before also soon adding that it did not advice against the use of ibuprofen.

Tylenol further increases its share of analgesics sales

Johnson & Johnson saw a strong spike in demand for its Tylenol painkillers in mid-March and continued to see sustained demand throughout the spring. The conflicting reports about the safety of using ibuprofen to treat COVID-19 symptoms had a lasting impact, as Tylenol initially struggled to sustain enough supply for the increased demand in many retailers throughout the US and reported a temporary scarcity of Tylenol.

Temporary Excedrin discontinuation leads to sharp declines in adult combination products

GlaxoSmithKline temporarily pulled Excedrin Extra Strength and Excedrin Migraine products off the shelves in January 2020 over inconsistencies in the transfer and weighing of ingredients. In turn, Excedrin products missed the tremendous growth opportunity that other analgesic products saw during the panic-buying period in mid-March.

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