The emergence of winter illnesses is straining pharmacies across New York City trying to keep their shelves stocked with medication.  

At Oral Drug in Parkchester, the demand for prescription medications such as ibuprofen, amoxicillin and Tamiflu keeps coming as more and more city residents are getting sick from COVID-19, the flu and respiratory syncytial virus, better known as RSV.  

Some pharmacies say this is one of the biggest medication shortages they’ve seen in recent years, with the worst of the shortage impacting New York City’s little ones. A number of pharmacies say they’re completely out of prescription liquid Tylenol, commonly used to treat infants and small children.  

Medications like Tamiflu and liquid Tylenol remain on back order at some local pharmacies, and some owners say they’ve reached out to manufacturers directly in order to meet demands during this winter season.