Indiana Attorney General seeks suspension of pharmacy license due to meningitis

The Indiana Attorney General’s Office confirms they filed a petition today to suspend the license of the Massachusetts specialty pharmacy linked to a nationwide outbreak of fungal meningitis.

The office is asking the state pharmacy board to prohibit the New England Compounding Center of Framingham, Massachusetts from operating in Indiana, saying the specialty pharmacy poses a threat to public health. The state pharmacy board is expected to consider the suspension request on November 5.

This week, Ohio pharmacy officials suspended the pharmacy’s license to operate in that state.

Meanwhile, Indiana health officials have confirmed 43 cases of fungal meningitis and three deaths linked to tainted steroid injections that came from the New England Compounding Center.

The Indiana State Department of Health reported two additional cases Thursday, and Elkhart County’s health officer confirmed all three Indiana deaths have been linked to that county east of South Bend and bordering Michigan.

The ISDH has reported that six Indiana clinics received the tainted steroids, including the OSMC Outpatient Surgery Center in Elkhart. The tainted medication also went to clinics in Columbus, Evansville, Fort Wayne, South Bend and Terre Haute.

Source: Indiana Examiner at http://www.examiner.com/article/indiana-attorney-general-seeks-suspension-of-pharmacy-license-due-to-meningitis