Medicines regulation and law

Prescribing of cannabis-based medical products increased almost ten-fold in 2021

Despite the increase in the private healthcare sector, data on the number of cannabis-based medical products prescribed on the NHS were so low they could not be reported.…

Online pharmacies are eight times more likely to fail regulatory standards, data show

Exclusive: Investigation reveals how some online pharmacies are repeatedly prescribing large amounts of opioids and z-drugs, in one case using an accountant to approve medicine orders.…

MPs vote in favour of continued online provision of medical abortion drugs

Temporary measures to allow women to have early-stage abortions at home following a video consultation during the COVID-19 pandemic will now be made permanent.…

One in five drugs approved by EMA in 2021 lacked full environmental risk data

Exclusive: Analysis of European Medicines data has revealed that 17 marketing authorisations were approved in 2021 despite being submitted with insufficient environmental risk data.…

Nigel Clarke: ‘The pharmacy registration exam needs to be revisited’

As he steps down after eight years at the helm of the pharmacy regulator, Nigel Clarke reflects on his tenure during one of the most challenging times in the history of public health.…

RPS calls for complete ban on online diet drug

The RPS believes that 2,4-Dinitrophenol should not be supplied under any circumstances.…

More than 15,000 falsified medicines found in UK supply chain over past two years

Exclusive: The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has identified 15,000 falsified medicine packs since the UK left the European Union in January 2020.…

Government misses consultation deadline for post-Brexit scheme to detect fake medicines

The UK government aimed to issue a public consultation on a national falsified medicine scheme within 12 months of enacting the Medicines and Medical Devices Act on 11 February 2021.…

How to become a final medical signatory in the pharmaceutical industry

What is a final medical signatory, and how do you go about becoming one? This article explains the role and the skills and experience it requires.…

Why it is too soon to celebrate the Alzheimer’s ‘wonder drug’

The US approval of aducanumab — the first disease-modifying drug for Alzheimer’s disease — based on a trial with a surrogate endpoint, has caused quite a stir. Here we look at the controversy and what the approval might mean for Alzheimer’s research.…