The FDA has long maintained that generic drugs are every bit as good as their brand name counterparts. But in recent years the agency has had to crack down on foreign generic drug manufacturers because of substandard quality control.
Just recently, the FDA banned drug imports from a Ranbaxy facility in Punjab. Ranbaxy is the largest drug maker in India and was one of the first firms to export generic medicines to the U.S. market. The consent decree puts the company in something of a bind, and could have implications for the US drug supply.
The Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, Dr. Margaret Hamburg, is in India this week to discuss quality control topics with her counterparts in the Indian Regulatory agency. She will also be attending the World Spice Congress meeting, presumably in part because contamination of spices such as turmeric imported from India has also been a concern in the US.
