Q: I received a call from my pharmacy that my blood pressure medicine, valsartan, was being recalled. They replaced it with a safer alternative. When I picked it up, I specifically asked the pharmacist if the valsartan was made by a U.S. company and if it had been manufactured in the USA.
She was emphatic that the Macleods valsartan was from a U.S. company and the pills were made in the United States.
When I got home I got out my magnifying glass and discovered that the pills were “manufactured for Macleods Pharma USA, Inc.” The address was Plainsboro, N.J. That was reassuring until I looked a little closer. The label also stated that my pills were “Manufactured by Macleods Pharmaceuticals Ltd. Damon (U.T.) INDIA.” Shouldn’t the pharmacist have told me the truth?
A: It is not unusual for foreign pharmaceutical companies to have U.S. subsidiaries. According to the company, Macleods Pharma USA is the U.S. division of Macleods Pharmaceuticals, LTD, based in Mumbai, India.
According to the Food and Drug Administration, this company’s valsartan products are “not currently recalled.” That means they should be considered a safe alternative. We do think the pharmacist should have been truthful and told you that the parent company was in India and the pills were made there. Perhaps she had not taken the time to look it up, so she just assumed “Plainsboro, N.J,” meant “Made in the USA.”
Q: I took Zyban to quit smoking in 1997. Other than it slowing me down, I had no side effects. After about two weeks on it, I had no desire for any more cigarettes.
I’ve been tobacco-free since then. Prior to that, I had smoked for over 30 years. Why are people still taking Chantix, which is known to cause side effects, when older drugs that work are still available? My guess is that Zyban also would cost less than Chantix.
A: The active ingredient in Zyban is bupropion, the same compound found in the antidepressant Wellbutrin. Bupropion was tested against placebo or nondrug treatment in 44 randomized trials for smoking cessation (Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Jan. 8, 2014). People taking Zyban were 60 percent more likely to have quit after at least six months.
Despite their success, a more recent review of real-world smokers found that neither Zyban nor Chantix made a significant difference in long-term smoking cessation (Journal of the National Cancer Institute, June 2018). The authors of this analysis suggest that the support and counseling provided in clinical trials may account for the discrepancy.
Q: My doctor wrote a prescription for a pricey medicine. I am interested in buying it from Canada to save money, but I don't know where to start. I don't know a reliable pharmacy in Canada. Thanks for any information you can provide on where I should turn.
A: The FDA frowns on patients buying prescription medicines online from Canada even if they are made by the original brand-name manufacturer. Nevertheless, it often is possible to save quite a bit on brand-name medicines if you purchase them from a legitimate Canadian pharmacy. Most will accept prescriptions that are mailed or faxed.
Some possibilities include www.planetdrugsdirect.com, www.qualityprescriptiondrugs.com and www.ADVpharmacy.com. We have listed websites and phone numbers for these and other valid Canadian drugstores in our “eGuide to Saving Money on Medicines.” It is available at www.PeoplesPharmacy.com.
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