Mix-up at pill plant could impact health of New York consumers
A pharmaceutical company has become concerned about potential product liability that may result from the mix-up of several of its prescription pain pills and over-the counter medicines. This story is worth paying attention to because the underlying facts could affect the healths of New York residents.
Novartis, the Swiss pharmaceutical company, operates a drug manufacturing plant in Nebraska. That plant was shut down last week as a result of numerous complaints that mistakes had been made with respect to several of the products made at the facility.
Novartis recently issued a recall of Excedrin and NoDoz with expiration dates of Dec. 20, 2014 or earlier. Bufferin and Gas-X medicines with expiration dates of Dec. 20, 2013 or earlier have also been recalled. The concern has been raised that these products may contain broken or chipped tablets, but more seriously may actually contain stray capsules of other more dangerous drugs.
This is because at the same manufacturing plant, some opioid prescription painkillers, such as Percocet are also manufactured. The concern is that if one of these more powerful drugs were accidentally taken by an unsuspecting victim there could be dangerous consequences.
The plant’s problems are currently under investigation by the FDA. The production problems raise concerns regarding the safety of the products manufactured at this plant. Obviously, the processes at this drug manufacturing facility will need to be addressed and rectified.
In fact, mix-ups at this Novartis plant are not new. In July of this year, the FDA found that 166 consumer complaints of problems similar to those that are under investigation were not adequately addressed by Novartis.
For now, the = FDA, has not received any report of any injuries caused by the mix-ups. However, New York consumers should be careful to check whether they might have any products that may be subject to the recall. If so, they should contact the company to receive a refund, and definitely should not consume any of the pills.
Source: The Wall Street Journal, “FDA Warns of Mix-Up in Pills by Novartis,” Jennifer Corbett Dooren, Jan. 10, 2012
