If you purchase pharmaceuticals in the United States, you might just assume that they have all been produced under strict guidelines that meet the standards the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sets out.
A recent recall of over two dozen different types of drugs by Glenmark Pharmaceuticals makes clear that this is not always the case.
Hard to monitor standards
Pharmaceutical companies often make use of the cheaper labor available in places such as India to manufacture drugs at a lower cost. They then mark up the drugs (often by a massive percentage) to sell to U.S. consumers.
What Glenmark discovered is that one of the overseas factories they were using was not up to scratch. The conditions the drugs were produced under did not meet the strict standards required by the FDA. While the recall is a positive step, it is important to note that many people have already bought and taken these medicines.
They include sufferers of epilepsy, heart disease, multiple sclerosis and more. According to the FDA, anyone who took the drugs from the faulty batches may suffer temporary or reversible harm.
This is one case, but it is not the only one of poor-quality drugs being sold to U.S. consumers. Whether made overseas or here in the U.S., gauging the effects can be difficult, as not everyone will necessarily suffer the same adverse symptoms. Anyone who feels they or a family member may have suffered harm due to faulty drugs should learn more about what legal options are available.
