Most people do not realize that once a drug is approved for use by the FDA a doctor can prescribe that drug for almost any other condition. This problem is compounded by the practice of many drug companies of promoting the drug for off label use. If you are being prescribed a drug you should ask your doctor if the drug was approved by the FDA for your illness. You should also always ask about any known side effects and complications. You should also know whether you are being prescribed a generic . If you use a generic drug under the current state of the law you will have no right to sue should you be wrongfully injured as a result of taking that drug.
HealthDay (8/9) reports, “Many patients who are being treated with 'off-label' drugs are unaware that the medications they have been prescribed by their doctor aren't being used in ways” not approved by the FDA, according to a study “published online Aug. 6 in the Mayo Clinic Proceedings.” Lead author Dr. Christopher Wittich, a Mayo Clinic internal medicine physician called the practice “very common,” and the study suggested that the “costs and lengthy process of obtaining FDA approval may deter drug companies from seeking approval for a new drug indication.”
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