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KEVIN GUTTING

Amherst Pharmacy owner Yianni Nikitas says people have been coming to his business at at 381 College St. from throughout the region to fill their prescriptions for Adderall. There is a nationwide shortage of the drug used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

AMHERST - Customers have been flocking to tiny Amherst Pharmacy from as far away as Greenfield and Enfield, Conn., to get their prescriptions for Adderall filled, said owner Yianni Nikitas.

The drug, widely prescribed for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, has been scarce at chain stores such as CVS and Wal-Mart since October, he said. Wal-Mart has referred 30 to 40 people seeking Adderall to Amherst Pharmacy, which opened on College Street in September, he said.

"People say they've called 20 pharmacies and no one has it," Nikitas said. "I've had parents say their child can't perform his work in school, and they're very happy to have found a place that has it. They've been upset they can't find a medication that's crucial for their child."

An average of 9 percent of children between 5 and 17 are diagnosed with ADHD per year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Symptoms of ADHD include difficulty staying focused and controlling behavior. In 2010, more than 18 million prescriptions were written for Adderall, up 13.4 percent from 2009, according to IMS Health, which tracks such data.

"One mother said her son went from failing straight to the honor roll" after starting to take Adderall, Nikitas said.

The drug is also popular among college students "because they've found it gives them an edge" in their studies, he said. A graduate student at the University of Massachusetts told Nikitas he was considering dropping out of his program until the drug became more available, he said.

The national Adderall shortage was the subject of a front-page story Saturday in the New York Times. Hundreds of patients are complaining daily to the Food and Drug Administration because they are unable to find a pharmacy with enough pills to fill their prescriptions, according to the story.

The shortage is attributable to a conflict between drug manufacturers and the Drug Enforcement Administration, as companies seek to maximize profits and federal agents try to minimize abuse, according to the story.

Some people do use Adderall, which is derived from amphetamine compounds, for its euphoric effects, Nikitas said. Paul Serio of Serio's Pharamacy in Northampton said a "huge black market" has developed for illicit use of the drug.

"You always have to have your antenna up," Serio said. "You're dealing with something you know has a higher street value" than the price it sells for at pharmacies, he said.

Because of its potential for abuse, the government allows manufacturers to make only so much Adderall per year, he said. This year, in part because of higher demand, there wasn't enough to go around by October, but he expects more of the drug to be available later this month, he said.

Serio said he has not been able to fill all the Adderall prescriptions customers have brought to him, and has referred some customers to Amherst Pharmacy. A pharmacist at the CVS in Amherst said the store has also been unable to fill all prescriptions, but declined to talk on the record, citing company policy.

Nikitas said he thinks the reason that he has had Adderall in stock when big chain stores haven't is that they have different suppliers. Chain stores can't just buy from his wholesaler because they may have exclusive contracts with their own, he said.

Serio said it's possible that Amherst Pharmacy, as a new business, has more of the medication because it hasn't built up a clientele yet and so it has not gone through its supply as fast as established pharmacies.

Nikitas said Monday he has a good supply of the drug still in stock.

"I was shocked that I had something that (the chains) couldn't get," he said. "I'm basically a mom-and-pop pharmacy and I don't have the warehouse capabilities they have."

The shortage of Adderall has led to hoarding, Nikitas said. "People panic when they need the drug, and that leads to a more severe shortage," he said.

Although the unexpected out-of-town customers have helped his fledgling business, Nikitas said, Adderall is a labor-intensive product. Because it has the highest level of government control, there are strict rules for prescribing it and sales involve a lot of paperwork, he said.

Amherst Pharmacy has a new ADHD drug called Intuniv that has the lowest level of government control and does not produce euphoria, though it can have some side effects, Nikitas said. It is expensive, costing $700 per 100 pills versus about $80 for Adderall, and not all insurance plans will cover it, he said.

Nikitas, like Serio, sometimes gets suspicious Adderall prescriptions that he declines to fill, and tries to contact doctors' offices for verification for any customer he doesn't know. He rejected one prescription that was photocopied and without a doctor's signature, he said.

There were at least five police incidents in Hampshire County involving Adderall in 2011. Two involved reports of stolen prescriptions, and two involved 18-year-olds arrested for possession of the drug without prescriptions. In another incident, a CVS pharmacist tipped off police after receiving a suspicious Adderall prescription, resulting in the arrest of a man who allegedly had 500 doctors' pads and was writing prescriptions for himself.

Some people use Adderall as a diet aid because it also suppresses appetite, Nikitas said.

"Any drug has the potential for being abused, even cough syrup and decongestants," he said. "People who are prone to abusing drugs will find something. You can't take (Adderall) away because it has so many beneficial effects."