Steroid Meningitis

Meningitis pharmacy was violating law

According to a USA Today story about an ongoing fungal meningitis outbreak, the specialty pharmacy responsible has been flagrantly violating both sanitation standards and the terms of the federal laws permitting it to operate.

But the story characterizes the problem not simply as the practices of a single irresponsible business, but a systemic failing that’s permitted “compounding pharmacies” to operate on a large scale under relatively lax regulatory standards.

And patients ...

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Inspections shut down 11 Mass. pharmacies

State officials in Massachusetts have shut down 11 specialty pharmacies of the type responsible for last year’s deadly meningitis outbreak, following a series of surprise inspections.

According to a story in USA Today, inspectors looked in on 40 compounding pharmacies, which produce custom prescriptions in response to specific physician orders.

Compounding pharmacies aren’t subject to the same regulations as other pharmaceutical manufacturers.

That regulatory gap drew attention last year, ...

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Meningitis pharmacy owners got $16 million

The owners of a specialty pharmacy blamed for a deadly fungal meningitis outbreak got more than $16 million from the business last year – which accounts for about half of its sales.

The Boston Globe, citing bankruptcy records, reports that four family members who co-founded the New England Compounding Center also ran up expenses on corporate American Express cards totaling $90,000, including charges made after the company shut down in October.

The federal Centers for Disease Control and ...

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FDA, state officials take look at compounding pharmacies

During a conference that included public health officials from all 50 states, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration examined the role of the federal government in regulating “compounding pharmacies.”

A compounding pharmacy called the New England Compounding Center – where specialty drugs are prepared using ingredients from other sources – produced the steroid medication responsible for the 19-state fungal meningitis outbreak that has so far sickened 620 ...

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More compounding pharmacies closed

Massachusetts state officials have ordered the closing of three more compounding pharmacies, similar to the one blamed for a deadly meningitis outbreak, after finding problems during surprise inspections.

A story in the Boston Globe said the state Department of Public Health determined that no recalls are necessary for now.

Compounding pharmacies are specialty operations that manufacture medication custom-made to the specifications of individual physicians. One such pharmacy, the ...

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More contaminants in drugs from meningitis pharmacy

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is warning health care providers of additional contaminants in drugs made by the New England Compounding Center – a Massachusetts specialty pharmacy blamed for a fungal meningitis outbreak.

The CDC’s alert says bacterial and fungal contaminants were found in cardioplegia, a drug used in heart surgeries, and the steroid medications betamethasone and triamcinolone.

WBIR out of Tennessee reports that all ...

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