Q: I’ve noticed that Nexium is available over the counter without a prescription. Does that mean there will be a generic version of Nexium I could get by prescription?
—David A Manecke, Mableton
A: Ranbaxy, a drug manufacturer based in India, holds a 180-day exclusivity to begin producing a generic version of Nexium, a heartburn drug, by Nov. 27. The company must find suitable suppliers because the U.S. Food and Drug Administration barred Ranbaxy from selling drugs made in one of its India plants in the United States because of shoddy manufacturing processes, Reuters reported.
Ranbaxy has been in talks with at least two companies to obtain ingredients for its Ohm Laboratories plant in New Jersey, which is the company’s only U.S. facility for making generic drugs. Over-the-counter sales for Nexium was approved in March.
Q: I have been a fan of Barry Manilow for 40 years. In his bios, it said that he was born in 1946. Now he is listed as being born in 1943. What is the real year?
—Sandra Meierhofer, College Park
A: Arista Records, Manilow's record label in the 1970s, reportedly said he was 29 in 1975 – when he really was 32 – to make him more appealing to teens as his career and popularity began to rise. Manilow, 71, was born Barry Alan Pincus in Brooklyn on June 17, 1943, according to many sources, including "Barry Manilow: The Biography," by Patricia Butler. His father left the family when he was 2 years old and he took his mother's maiden of Manilow at his bar mitzvah.
Andy Johnston wrote this column. Do you have a question about the news? We’ll try to get the answer. Call 404-222-2002 or email q&a@ajc.com (include name, phone and city).
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