Day: January 1, 2023

Snippet from the press release:

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, in partnership with other federal and international agencies, took action this week against websites that sell potentially dangerous, unapproved prescription drugs to U.S. consumers. The FDA and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) also conducted extensive examinations at U.S.-based international mail facilities, where many packages containing prescription drugs enter the U.S., and found that most of the examined packages contained illegal prescription drugs that had been ordered from online sources.

These actions took place in support of the 7th annual International Internet Week of Action (IIWA) — May 13 to May 20, 2014 — sponsored by Interpol, and also known as Operation Pangea VII. During Operation Pangea VII, law enforcement, customs, and regulatory authorities from 111 countries collaborated to identify the makers and distributors of illegal drug products and medical devices that used the Internet to sell their products and remove these products from the supply chain.

Operation Pangea VII‘s coordinated efforts at mail facilities resulted in the detention or seizure of 19,618 packages containing medicines purportedly from Australia, the United Kingdom (UK), New Zealand and Canada. These packages actually contained unapproved or suspected counterfeit drugs from other countries, such as India, China, Singapore, Taiwan, Mexico, Laos, Malaysia, as well as Australia, New Zealand and the UK.

The FDA and the CBP inspected packages at the mail facilities in Los Angeles, New York and Chicago, and detained or seized 583 packages. Preliminary findings show that certain drug products from abroad, such as insulin, estrogen, bimatoprost, human chorionic gonadotropin, tramadol, tadalafil and sildenafil citrate were on their way to U.S. consumers. The FDA also notified Internet service providers, domain name registrars and related organizations that 1,975 websites were selling products in violation of U.S. law.

Read the rest — FDA targets illegal online pharmacies in globally coordinated action

Snippet from the press release:

The Oklahoma law firm of Atkins & Markoff and its firm members who serve clients as defective drugs attorneys have made the decision to offer people who have used the medication known as Propecia an opportunity to obtain a free and confidential legal consultation regarding their potential legal rights and options regarding possible side effects of permanent sexual dysfunction and impotence.

These free initial legal consultations are meant to provide information and guidance to those who have used Propecia and who feel that they have suffered from alleged Propecia side effects. Consumers who believe they may have been harmed in this manner are encouraged to contact the firm immediately to schedule this free initial consultation.

Read the full press release — Law Firm of Atkins & Markoff Now Offering Free and Confidential Propecia Impotence and Sexual Dysfunction Lawsuit Consultations

The law firm says they specialize in these type of lawsuits, so if you feel wronged by Propecia and are looking for a pay day, they want to talk to you.

Question re Propecia and Sperm Count. I take Flomax and Finasteride. Side effects are reduced libido and ejaculation. I noticed if I discontinue taking the pills, I regain libido and ejaculation volume in 3 – 4 days, although I had only been on these pills for three weeks. My question is, can I periodically take a “prescription holiday” and then resume medication after, say a week without risk of return of BPH? I.E. will the long term benefits of this prescription program remain in effect if I take periodic holidays?

I am not a urologist, but I suspect that when the “flow problem” has resolved, you might be able to stop if for a week, but I would first check with your prescribing doctor for a more definitive answer.

I just saw a mention of a site called GoodRX that allows you to price check local stores. I ran finasteride through their search and found the prices charged by my local Costco, Kmart, and Target stores, among others. Might be something your readers would be interested in.

Thanks for the information!

It seems there are a wide range of markups for generic finasteride 5mg. $9 for 30 pills seem to be the lowest. If you cut those pills into four pieces, that is basically four months of hair loss treatment for 9 bucks. Doing the math, that’s $27 a year. Not too shabby. You just need your doctor to prescribe the higher dosage to you with instructions to cut the pill.