Report reveals flawed drug system

These recommendations from the Institute of Medicine make quite a bit of sense. I like the idea of a mandatory re-evaluation of a new product within five years.

I suppose these concepts are being brought forward with the goal of preventing another Vioxx or Baycol incident. My concern is that these measures won't prevent the inevitable questionable prescribing of the latest new drugs over tried-and-true therapies that are lacking some tiny advantage that was pointed out by a drug rep.

From the Globe and Mail:
A new report that calls for a major overhaul of the way prescription drugs are regulated and monitored by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration also has applicability to Health Canada, medical experts say.

The report, released Friday by the Institute of Medicine, part of the National Academy of Sciences in the United States, recommends that consumer alerts be put on the labels of all new drugs for a two-year period. Other recommendations include a mandatory re-evaluation of the safety and efficacy of new drugs within five years of their approval for use. ...more