Hospitals in England hit by shortages of common drugs such as paracetamol

NHS trusts also report disruption to supplies last winter of co-codamol and blood pressure medication ramipril

Hospitals are being hit by shortages of key drugs used to provide pain relief, prevent blood clots and tackle high blood pressure.

Dozens of NHS trusts in England have encountered scarcities of aspirin, the painkiller co-codamol – a combination of paracetamol and codeine – and ramipril, a blood pressure tablet.