Pfizer’s recalls out of control birth control pills

Birth control pills recalled

Pfizer has recalled 1 million birth control pills in the US because they may not do what they were supposed to do. It appears the pills may not contain enough contraceptive to be effective in pregnancy prevention.

The problems seems to be a quality control screw up as some packets were found to contain too many active tablets, while others had too few. According to Pfizer, these packaging defects do not pose any immediate health risks. However, consumers exposed to affected packaging are advised to begin using a non-hormonal form of contraception immediately.

The product recalled are Lo/Ovral®-28 (norgestrel and ethinyl estradiol)Tablets and Norgestrel and Ethinyl Estradiol Tablets (generic). Lot numbers of affected packs are listed on the FDA’s website,

These tablets were manufactured and packaged by Pfizer Inc., commercialized by Akrimax Rx Products and labeled under the Akrimax Pharmaceuticals brand. This product is distributed to warehouses, clinics and retail pharmacies nationwide.

Any adverse events that may be related to the use of these products should be reported to Akrimax Medical Information at 1-877-509-3935 (8 AM to 7 PM Mon-Fri CST) or to FDA's Med Watch Program either online, by regular mail or by fax.

Online:              www.fda.gov/medwatch/report.htm
Regular Mail:   Use postage-paid, pre-addressed Form FDA 3500
                           available at: www.fda.gov/MedWatch/getforms.htm. Mail
                           to the address on the pre-addressed form.
Fax:                   1-800-FDA-0178

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Source

the U.S. Food and Drug Administration website

Lot numbers of affected packs of Lo/Ovral®-28 (norgestrel and ethinyl estradiol)Tablets and Norgestrel and Ethinyl Estradiol Tablets (generic) follow on the table below:

NDC	Product	Lot	Expiration	Configuration/Count
24090-801-84	LO/OVRAL® 28	E15678	08/31/2013	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-801-84	LO/OVRAL® 28	E15679	08/31/2013	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-801-84	LO/OVRAL® 28	E15686	08/31/2013	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-801-84	LO/OVRAL® 28	E15687	01/31/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-801-84	LO/OVRAL® 28	E15690	01/31/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-801-84	LO/OVRAL® 28	E15698	01/31/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-801-84	LO/OVRAL® 28	E15700	02/28/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-801-84	LO/OVRAL® 28	E80434	07/31/2013	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-801-84	LO/OVRAL® 28	E80438	08/31/2013	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-801-84	LO/OVRAL® 28	F36908	02/28/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-801-84	LO/OVRAL® 28	F36909	02/28/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-801-84	LO/OVRAL® 28	F43915	03/31/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-801-84	LO/OVRAL® 28	F43926	03/31/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-801-84	LO/OVRAL® 28	F43927	03/31/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-961-84	Norgestrel 0.3 mg/Ethinyl Estradiol 0.03 mg	E15677	08/31/2013	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-961-84	Norgestrel 0.3 mg/Ethinyl Estradiol 0.03 mg	E15704	01/31/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-961-84	Norgestrel 0.3 mg/Ethinyl Estradiol 0.03 mg	E15706	01/31/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-961-84	Norgestrel 0.3 mg/Ethinyl Estradiol 0.03 mg	E80440	08/31/2013	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-961-84	Norgestrel 0.3 mg/Ethinyl Estradiol 0.03 mg	F16388	01/31/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-961-84	Norgestrel 0.3 mg/Ethinyl Estradiol 0.03 mg	F16390	02/28/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-961-84	Norgestrel 0.3 mg/Ethinyl Estradiol 0.03 mg	F22132	02/28/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-961-84	Norgestrel 0.3 mg/Ethinyl Estradiol 0.03 mg	F31330	02/28/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-961-84	Norgestrel 0.3 mg/Ethinyl Estradiol 0.03 mg	F36911	03/31/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-961-84	Norgestrel 0.3 mg/Ethinyl Estradiol 0.03 mg	F36913	03/31/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-961-84	Norgestrel 0.3 mg/Ethinyl Estradiol 0.03 mg	F43924	03/31/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-961-84	Norgestrel 0.3 mg/Ethinyl Estradiol 0.03 mg	F43925	03/31/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-961-84	Norgestrel 0.3 mg/Ethinyl Estradiol 0.03 mg	F43934	03/31/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each
24090-961-84	Norgestrel 0.3 mg/Ethinyl Estradiol 0.03 mg	F53238	03/31/2014	6 Pilpacks® of 28 tablets each