U.S. drug recalls common, not well publicized: study

June 04, 2012, Andrew M. Seaman, Reuters

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recalls potentially harmful drugs about once every month, but they could be doing a better job of letting doctors and patients know about them, says a new study.

Over an eight-year span, researchers found that the FDA failed to send notifications for one in five of the most serious recalls through its two electronic systems used to alert doctors and the public.

The so called Class I recalls, according to the FDA, are issued for drugs that, if taken, have the potential to cause “serious adverse health consequences or death.”

U.S. drug recalls common, not well publicized: study