EP 947B - Bottle of Lies: The Truth About Generic Drug Safety

Today, 90 percent of our pharmaceutical market is comprised of generics, the majority of which are manufactured overseas.

The thought is that these drugs are as effective as their brand-name counterparts, just less expensive. 

Is that really true?

According to investigative journalist, Katherine Eban, there is a lot of fraud going on with these generic medications. Her book, Bottle of Lies: The Inside Story of the Generic Drug Boom, exposes the deceit behind generic drug manufacturing.

Drawing on exclusive accounts from whistleblowers and regulators, as well as thousands of pages of confidential FDA documents, Eban reveals an industry where fraud is rampant, companies routinely falsify data, and executives circumvent almost every principle of safe manufacturing to minimize cost and maximize profit, confident in their ability to fool inspectors.

Meanwhile, patients unwittingly consume medicine with unpredictable and dangerous effects.

Listen as Eban joins Dr. Roizen to explain how this could happen -- and what can be done to change the process and ultimately ensure the health and safety of those who consume generics.

Bonus
Surprising Mental Side Effects of Pain Relievers