Hearing To Examine Massachusetts Oversight Of Pharmacies

The oversight of compounding pharmacies in Massachusetts will be the subject of a legislative hearing this week.  WAMC”s Paul Tuthill reports

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State legislative leaders scheduled a hearing for Wednesday to look into the regulatory issues  surrounding the Framingham based  New England Compounding Center.   A steroid distributed by the pharmacy is linked with a nationwide fungal meningitis outbreak that has sickened hundreds and claimed 30 lives so far.  The director of the state pharmacy board was fired last week after it was discovered that questions had been brought to the board months ago about why New England Compounding was  apparently allowed to send drugs out of state without a manufacturing license. Another question is how inspectors failed to notice unsanitary conditions at the compounding center.