After nationwide meningitis scare, lawmakers decry compound pharmacies

by DAVID SCHECHTER

WFAA

Posted on October 8, 2012 at 7:09 PM

DALLAS – Lawmakers are on the attack: They say compounding pharmacies, like the one in Massachusetts that has allegedly sickened more than 100, operate in a "regulatory black hole" with very little federal oversight by the FDA.

And that discussion is calling attention to a compounding pharmacy in Dallas that recently pleaded guilty to shipping mislabeled medication that led to three deaths.

When three patients died in Portland, Wa. after taking the same gout medication in 2007 it was no coincidence. A federal investigation quickly pointed back to Dallas and this compounding pharmacy called ApotheCure.

The FDA found ApotheCure's drug mixture was 640 percent stronger than prescribed. Last April, owner Gary Osborn pleaded guilty on misdemeanor charges.

"Once these medications start crossing state lines logistically it's just more difficult," said Mike Johnson, Dean of the University of North Texas System’s College of Pharmacy.

There are 7,500 compounding pharmacies in the U.S., many of them mom and pop operations, that serve local customers.

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