W.Va. official: 1 clinic got recalled medication

JOHN RABY, Associated Press

Published 10:44 a.m., Thursday, October 4, 2012

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — A West Virginia clinic received a steroid medication suspected in an outbreak of a rare form of meningitis, the head of the state Bureau for Public Health said Thursday.

Dr. Marian Swinker didn't immediately identify the clinic and said her office's epidemiology staff is closely monitoring the situation with the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The steroid injections are mostly used for back pain.

"We understand that CDC has contacted that clinic and that patients who may have received the medication in question will be contacted for follow-up," Swinker said.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/W-Va-official-1-clinic-got-recalled-medication-3919296.php#ixzz28MDcORCM

5 people now dead; In all, 35 people in six states have been sickened from a steroid compounded by the New England Compounding Center that was distributed to 23 states, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.

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Hundreds at risk in meningitis outbreak Health officials are now trying to track down people in 23 states who got epidural steroid injections. NBC’s Robert Bazell reports.

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Meningitis Outbreak Is Growing As More Are Being Reported Sick

Rare US meningitis outbreak grows; 4 dead, 22 sick

MIKE STOBBE, Associated Press Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

MIKE STOBBE, Associated Press, TRAVIS LOLLER, Associated Press

Updated 5:18 a.m., Thursday, October 4, 2012

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Rare-US-meningitis-outbreak-grows-4-dead-22-sick-3916606.php#ixzz28KotOAqR

Vandy doctor alerted health officials about meningitis problem - WAFF-TV: News, Weather and Sports for Huntsville, AL

Vandy doctor alerted health officials about meningitis problem - WAFF-TV: News, Weather and Sports for Huntsville, AL

Some say FDA oversight needed State boards lack staff to fully monitor

Duane Marsteller and Walter F. Roche Jr.

The Tennessean

The fungal meningitis outbreak centered on Nashville has renewed debate over who should regulate specialty pharmacies that compound medicines.

While they fall under the purview of state pharmacy boards, critics contend those state agencies are often too understaffed and underfunded to adequately monitor such facilities. They want the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to take a greater regulatory role.

But the FDA has said it will do that only on a case-by-case basis — such as the meningitis outbreak that surfaced in Nashville and has since spread to four other states.

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In Outbreak, Meningitis Is Reported in 5 States

The outbreak of a type of meningitis linked to back pain injections has spread, with over 30 cases, four of them fatal, in Tennessee, North Carolina, Florida, Virginia and Maryland.http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/04/health/meningitis-outbreak-grows-with-cases-in-5-states.html?smid=pl-share

Report Urges FDA to Approve More Drugs

By David Pittman, Washington Correspondent, MedPage Today

Published: October 03, 2012

WASHINGTON -- The FDA should set a goal of doubling the number of new drug approvals over the next 10 to 15 years and can approve products for smaller populations to do so, White House advisers said.

The agency can approve drugs with a narrower indication for which a drug is safe and effective, and protect a broader population from unknown or unfavorable risks, the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) said in a 110-page report.

"It would require a special designation that would strongly discourage prescribers from using these drugs off-label and discourage payors from reimbursing off-label use," stated the report, Propelling Innovation in Drug Discovery, Development, and Evaluation, released last week.

Off-label use "has contributed to discoveries of useful applications of drugs to non-approved uses, but it can also pose serious risks to patients," PCAST said.

The report follows President Obama's request to examine ways to improve the drug development and review process. Many advancements in biomedical research haven't translated to new medicines for the betterment of public health, the council said.

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Pharmacy suspends operations after meningitis outbreak

Pharmacy suspends operations after meningitis outbreak

Rare meningitis cases at 26 in 5 states, 4 deaths

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