U.S. Illnesses and Deaths Associated With Compounded Medications or Repackaged Medications

2001-2013

U.S. Illnesses and Deaths Associated With Compounded Medications, 2001-2013

Note: Please click here for the most recent data on adverse events associated with compounded drugs.

The table below was updated on Nov. 19, 2015, to reflect newly reported events, but is no longer current.

RXP_compounds_km_RF
RXP_compounds_km_RF
Data Visualization

U.S. Illnesses and Deaths Tied to Compounded or Repackaged Medications

Quick View
Data Visualization

Pew’s drug safety project has identified 73 reported compounding errors or potential errors associated with more than 1,562 adverse events, including at least 116 deaths, from 2001 to 2019. However, a 2015 survey found that only 30 percent of states (13 of the 43 that responded) require sterile compounding pharmacies to report serious adverse events.

Pew’s drug safety project has identified over 25 reported compounding errors or potential errors associated with 1,076 adverse events, including 90 deaths, since 2001. Because many such events may go unreported this list is probably an underestimation. Contamination of sterile products was the most common error, though others were the result of pharmacists’ and technicians’ miscalculations and mistakes in filling prescriptions.

Download the chart (PDF)

America’s Overdose Crisis
America’s Overdose Crisis

America’s Overdose Crisis

Sign up for our five-email course explaining the overdose crisis in America, the state of treatment access, and ways to improve care

Sign up
Quick View

America’s Overdose Crisis

Sign up for our five-email course explaining the overdose crisis in America, the state of treatment access, and ways to improve care

Sign up
Article

37 Scientists Pioneering the Future of Biomedical Research

Quick View
Article

Biomedical researchers are at the heart of nearly every medical advancement. From cutting-edge cancer treatments to breakthrough discoveries about emerging viruses, these scientists use creativity and ingenuity to explore new horizons in human health and medicine. And for nearly 40 years, The Pew Charitable Trusts has supported more than 1,000 early-career researchers committed to this work.

Composite image of modern city network communication concept

Learn the Basics of Broadband from Our Limited Series

Sign up for our four-week email course on Broadband Basics

Quick View

How does broadband internet reach our homes, phones, and tablets? What kind of infrastructure connects us all together? What are the major barriers to broadband access for American communities?