FDA Urged to Do More

How safe are the drugs we take? Although the FDA is required to review medications for safety and effectiveness before approving them, an independent organization says it should do more to track safety after drugs come on the market. The Institute of Medicine called on the agency to monitor risks that become apparent only after thousands of people have taken the drugs, as in the case of Vioxx. The FDA agrees that better information on drug hazards would be valuable, but protests that current resources are not adequate for such a large undertaking.
[IOM, May 1, 2012]