FDA & Prescription Drugs

• The Heparin Debacle Part Four – Baxter International Getting Away with Murder?

  Linda Snyder | May 07, 2008 4:42 PM | 0 CommentsDenver, CO

  Getting away with murder? That’s a pretty harsh question to ask when talking about a drug company. But, I question the policy of drug maker, Baxter International to leave a product on the market for...

• Let the FDA Do Its Job? I Don't Think So.

  Linda Snyder | May 02, 2008 1:49 PM | 0 CommentsDenver, CO

  What planet does Diane Bieri live on? It’s certainly not on the planet earth that I live on. In her commentary, Opposing view: Let FDA do its job, Ms. Bieri goes on and on about how the outcome of a...

• Pharmaceutical Companies Spend Twice as Much on Marketing than on Research and Development

  Linda Snyder | March 11, 2008 7:42 PM | 0 CommentsDenver, CO

  PLOS Medicine, an online medical journal conducted a study using numbers from 2004 and concluded that pharmaceutical companies spent almost twice as much on marketing than on their research and development for their United States markets.As a marketing person, on the one hand I am in awe of these marketing budgets, in excess of $57.5 billion dollars. But as a consumer, I'm a bit dismayed that...

• Fentanyl Patches Made by Actavis Recalled

  Jenny Albano | February 19, 2008 12:11 AM | 0 CommentsDenver, CO

  Actavis Inc., in conjunction with the FDA, is recalling 14 lots of its Fentanyl transdermal system CII patches because the patches have a defect that can cause them to leak. The Fentanyl patches were available from wholesalers and pharmacies throughout the United States. Fentanyl patches sold in Europe are not affected by this recall.The 14 lots of Fentanyl transdermal system patches being...

• Medication Abuse a Problem Among Young Adults

  Linda Snyder | January 14, 2008 11:12 AM | 0 CommentsDenver, CO

  A staggering new report released by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration stated that 3.1 million Americans ages 12 to 25 have used an over-the-counter cough and cold medicine in order get high.Cough syrups and cold pills are being used in large doses to get high and induce hallucinations for young people. The 2006 survey was completed with 45,000 people ages 12 to 25...

• Merck Takes Responsibility For Vioxx Through $4.85 Billion Settlement(2)

  Linda Snyder | November 14, 2007 12:17 PM | 0 CommentsDenver, CO

  It's been since 2004 that Merck & Co., one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world, has taken the pain medication Vioxx off of the shelves. Finally, on November 9th, Merck settled the numerous Vioxx lawsuits with agreeing to pay $4.85 billion. It appears that the Vioxx manufacturer finally recognized, after obtaining mixed results in the early Vioxx cases it forced to trial, that a...

• Counterfeit Drug Sales through the Internet a Growing Problem

  Courtney Mills | September 05, 2007 2:49 PM | 0 CommentsDenver, CO

  Last month a federal grand jury indicted 18 people on charges stemming from fraud to racketeering over their participation in an international online pharmaceutical sales ring. The company's name was Affpower, and by the time the federal government had shut the sales operation down, Affpower had moved over $126 million in illegally prescribed pharmaceuticals.The arrests haven't managed to stem...

• Avandia Heart Attack Link Known Long Ago?

  April Armani | May 23, 2007 12:59 PM | 0 CommentsDenver, CO

  According to consumer advocacy group Public Citizen, the FDA knew about the link between the Diabetes drug Avandia and heart attacks as long as five years ago.In 2002, U.S. Food and Drug Administration staff scientists called for reports of congestive heart failure to be included on the label of Avandia as well as Actos, made by Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., the group said, citing an internal...

• Pharmaceutical Company Punished for Pushing Addiction

  April Armani | May 10, 2007 4:39 PM | 0 CommentsDenver, CO

  OxyContin is an incredibly addicting painkiller. Until today, however, few realized that the pharmaceutical company which manufactures the drug actually promoted an OxyContin addiction. Roughly 6.3 million Americans report that they're currently using prescription drugs for nonmedical reasons, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.Prescription drug abuse knows no age....

• Ortho Evra Heat Precautions

  Staff Writer | January 16, 2007 6:20 PM | 0 CommentsDenver, CO

  It was already know that Ortho Evra can cause blood clots. Now the maker of the patch is saying that overweight women using the patch are at a particularly high risk of developing blood clots. Janssen-Ortho Inc. (subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson) also warns that women should not expose the Ortho Evra patch to sources of heat such as saunas and whirlpools. The company believes there is a...