FDA warns about stolen insulin
On Aug. 26 the Food and Drug Administration issued a warning to the public that stolen vials of the long-acting insulin Levemir still may be on the market.
On Aug. 26 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a second warning to the public that stolen vials of the long-acting insulin Levemir made by Novo Nordisk Inc. still may be on the market.
Evidence gathered to date suggests that the stolen insulin was not stored and handled properly and may be dangerous for people to use, the warning said. The FDA has received numerous reports of patients who suffered adverse events resulting from poor control of glucose levels after using a vial from one of the stolen lots.
When the FDA first alerted the public to the theft in June, it reported that three lots of Levemir totaling 129,000 vials had been stolen in North Carolina. So far, only about 2 percent of that number has been recovered.
The FDA says that it continues to investigate this matter aggressively and is asking for pharmacists' help. Any information regarding these vials should be reported to the FDA's Office of Criminal Investigations (OCI) at 800-551-3989.
