Drugs can be dangerous in two ways: adverse effects and inferior production

When we think of drug dangers, we think of side effect risks.

But there’s another type of drug danger. And it’s something that most people would never imagine.

The New York Times reports that officials have shut down almost one-third of the industry’s U.S. manufacturing capacity.

This is no surprise to insiders.

The manager of the Drug Information Service told the Times, “In the industry, everyone knows that all of the factories are in terrible shape.”

She added that the public is “still in the dark.”

A former drug plant supervisor claims that managers devised shortcuts that compromised quality. They also cut back on cleaning schedules to increase production.

So, how bad does it get?

Here’s my favorite detail from the Times piece. FDA inspectors shut down an Ohio drug plant last year due to a wide range of problems. In one instance, they found a barrel of “unknown liquid.” Testing revealed that the barrel was full of urine.

According to the Times, “…the report did not make it clear what the barrel was doing there.”

Hmmm. I think it’s pretty clear what the barrel was doing there.

It’s also pretty clear that we can let go of that old-fashioned image of pristine drug plants.

Sources:
“Lapses at Big Drug Factories Add to Shortages and Danger” Katie Thomas, The New York Times, 10/17/12, nytimes.com