US Doctors Urge Wider Use Of Cholesterol Drugs

[dflprincess]

42. Meanwhile...Ranbaxy stops generic Lipitor production amid recall for tiny glass particles"

[div class = "excerpt"]

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18563_162-57610994/leading-generic-drug-maker-faked-test-results-for-fda-approval/

Leading generic drug maker faked test results for FDA approval

(CBS News) Eighty percent of the drugs prescribed to Americans are generic drugs. They have to be approved by the FDA, usually after years of testing. Many of those drugs are made in India, and it turns out a leading manufacturer, Ranbaxy, often skipped the required steps for approval of its generic drugs.

In 2004, Ranbaxy executive Dinesh Thakur was asked by his boss to investigate allegations of fraud at the company. Thakur quickly uncovered disturbing problems with the data required by the FDA to prove the effectiveness of Ranbaxy drugs.

"The data's important because the FDA or other agencies globally look at that information to give you marketing authorization to sell the drug," Thakur says. "We started getting the files, and, lo and behold, we find that none of that exists in the first place. ... It means that we've gotten approvals from the FDA to sell drugs that were based on no data, or data that was fraudulent."

Thakur found Ranbaxy's drugs for illnesses like AIDS, heart problems and infections had no proof that they were effective. His findings were presented to Ranbaxy executives in 2005. But he says nothing was done.


Related story at the link: FDA stops 11 Indian-made drugs from entering U.S.

Makes me feel real good about anything my doctor might prescribe.