After two attempted votes followed by computer glitches and giggles, the FDA panel to assess restrictions on the diabetes drug Avandia narrowly voted Thursday to modify the restrictions.
FDA
A Nation In Need of A Pick-Me-Up: Our Need for Caffeine
Energy drinks and soda? Yawn. Now it’s all about inserting caffeine into other foods, from potato chips to mints. What’s behind our need for more caffeine?
Critics and Supporters React To Decision to Expand OTC Access to Plan B
Food Safety: CDC Report Shows Rates of Foodborne Illnesses Remain Largely Unchanged
About 1 in 6 people in the United States gets sick from eating contaminated food, a rate that has not declined in seven years.
Doctors Not Informed of Drug Side Effects During Sales Visits
Even though promotional drug meetings are one of the most common ways doctors find out about new medications, a new study shows they’re not getting all the information.
Colorful Way Tobacco Industry May Be Skirting Labeling Rules
Words like “light” and “mild” can’t be used on cigarette packages, but colors can.
‘Both My Sons Deserve to Live’: A Mother’s Plea for Quicker Action from the FDA
Jenn McNary’s two sons have Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Why can only one child access a drug that can prolong his life?
More Health Harms for Children Exposed to BPA
Kids with high exposure to the chemical bisphenol-A exhibit unusual levels of protein in the urine – an early warning sign of possible kidney and cardiovascular problems
Rulings Threaten FDA and States’ Ability to Regulate Drugs and Therapy
Two cases could trigger dramatic changes in the way medications and therapies are regulated.
Meningitis Cases Rise in Outbreak Linked to Tainted Steroid Shots
Health officials expect yet more cases of fungal meningitis related to contaminated steroid shots
How to Survive a Plague: Q&A with Act-Up’s Peter Staley on Effective Activism
The AIDS advocacy group Act-Up sped up the FDA’s drug approval process, improved patients’ access to drugs and changed the course of an epidemic. How did they do it?
A Doctor’s Dilemma: When Crucial New-Drug Data Is Hidden
In a new book, “Bad Pharma,” British columnist Dr. Ben Goldacre lays out all the clever ways in which the pharmaceutical industry is getting bad drugs onto shelves
Should the FDA Regulate Recreational Drugs?
New synthetic drugs are popping up at such a rate that the government can’t ban them fast enough. Maybe we should talk about regulating recreational substances instead