You may not know it, but most of the medications you might take, either prescribed, or over-the-counter, are made in other countries by factories that submitted the lowest bid. This makes higher profits for the drug companies doing the “outsourcing,” but is it good for you? I interviewed William Hubbard, a retired FDA associate commissioner, about whether the FDA is able to adequately inspect drugs manufactured in overseas factories.
Play Podcast 151
Mr. Hubbard wrote an article for the October 12, 2009 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine outlining some of the problems he sees with the FDA and the practice of outsourcing drug manufacturing to developing countries where regulation is often poor.
References:
Can the FDA Ensure the Safety of Our Pharmaceuticals?
Bacterial Contamination of Heparin and Saline
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Thanks for this excellent interview. I wanted to let you know that I’m glad you’ve decided to charge a subscription rather than take any kind of sponsors or product endorsements. Knowing you are not biased by any company or organization (as is the case with much of the health information we get)is worth the price of a subscription.
I appreciate this podcast with William Hubbard. Recently I discovered I have issues with gluten, which is found in a lot of prescription drugs, supplements, and foods. Unfortunately, doctors and pharmacists are not always familiar with this fact, so I have to call each and every drug company before I accept a medication. Nearly every time the drug company rep will say, “There are no gluten products in the active ingredients. HOWEVER, we purchase our inactive ingredients from other manufacturers/sources and we cannot account for what may be in their ingredients.” For me, this is unacceptable. I need to be on a blood pressure medication, but I cannot locate a doctor who is: 1) knowledgable on the subject of gluten-free products; 2) on my HMO plan; and 3) able to communicate the importance of these precise needs/issue to my pharmacist. I, for one, hope that the FDA gets better funding so they can help with my particular situation, as well as all the other problems with food and drug safety!
I’ll suscribe! I’ve been a listner from the start and love what you’ve done. Merry xmas to you and yours and have a great new year.