Defective drugs should be removed from the market via a drug recall with the product manufacturer and the food and drug administration or FDA working together to remove all hazardous medications from public interaction. Unfortunately, the process of a drug recall can take time while dangerous over-the-counter prescription drugs can fall into the hands of unsuspecting patients and cause a host of allergic reactions, side effects and other dangerous chemical situations.

The FDA is responsible for policing and ensuring that medical equipment and prescription drugs are safe and effective and also is responsible for providing current insignificant clinical information about supplements, medical foods and prescription drugs. The FDA contacts the public through important label changes, product safety alerts, product withdrawals and product recalls and has recently announced their initiative to be even more aggressive about securing the health of Americans.

Individuals who are ill and require medication to recover or function utterly depend on drug manufacturers and the FDA for their safety and quality of life. Although it is devastating when those who need medication cannot get access to them it is even worse if a trusted drug fails to perform the way it was expected or causes harm instead of helping.

Most drugs undergo rigorous testing in the United States before approval by the FDA, and some drugs available to the public are not yet approved by the FDA, like Enbrel, an expensive prescription drug used to treat rheumatoid and inflammatory arthritis. Other drugs, like Fosamax, were approved by the FDA with an acknowledgement of some slightly dangerous side effects. Fosamax and other oral bisphosphonates were used to prevent thigh fractures and were known to cause nephritis in jaw bone tissue, but were later revealed to cause the very bone fractures they were advertised to prevent.

The FDA will issue recalls at different levels for defective drugs and expects pharmaceutical companies to take total responsibility for regulating the removal of recalled products from pharmacy shelves. Sometimes these recalls are publicized in the media when the FDA believes there is a serious hazard, but often more minor recalls are unknown to the average American. For this reason it is important to take extra care whenever using medication of any sort.

It is essential that anyone taking prescription or over-the-counter medication always read warning and instruction labels and the FDA-approved prescription information sheets provided by their pharmacist thoroughly for a full awareness of potential hazards and contraindications. It is also important that medicated individuals become familiar with any potential side effects of their medication so that they can immediately contact a medical professional if any adverse reactions present themselves. Afterward the next call should be to an injury lawyer familiar with defective drugs and medical malpractice to assist them in finding the correct questions to ask of their physician and offending drug manufacturers.