Pharmacies are facing challenges this fall as cold and flu season approaches. In addition to labor disputes, pharmacies like CVS and Walgreens are now dealing with the FDA’s findings on the effectiveness of oral phenylephrine, a common ingredient in cold and flu medications. CVS has proactively pulled these products from their shelves, while Walgreens is closely monitoring the situation. The FDA’s investigation found that oral phenylephrine is ineffective in treating cold and flu symptoms, leading to concerns about its impact on pharmacy sales during the upcoming season.
CVS pharmacy pulls oral phenylephrine cold medicines from shelves
Pharmacies are facing numerous challenges as fall progresses—just in time for cold and flu season. The first challenge is a labor one. Pharmacy staff from CVS and Walgreens have already walked off the job in protest of working conditions. Now one of the big chain pharmacies’ bestselling products has been found to be ineffective by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), a finding that has prompted CVS to pull it from the shelves.
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What’s happened?
In September, the FDA announced the results of its investigation into the effectiveness of oral phenylephrine. Phenylephrine is a medication that is used to treat particular symptoms of colds and the flu, such as a stuffy nose and the feeling of blocked ears and sinuses. The only problem with the medication is that the FDA found that the oral version of it isn’t effective. So, in response to the FDA’s findings, CVS has made the decision to remove oral phenylephrine cold medicines from its shelves.
What about nasal sprays?
The FDA’s investigation specifically focused on oral phenylephrine medication and found that it is ineffective. However, the regulatory body stated that “Phenylephrine-containing nasal sprays will not be affected by any possible actions taken for phenylephrine in orally administered products.” This means that the FDA’s finding had no say on the effectiveness of the nasal spray version of the medication. Nasal sprays with phenylephrine will still be available for purchase.
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What about oral cold medicines with phenylephrine plus other ingredients?
If a product contains oral phenylephrine along with other medications to treat additional symptoms, the FDA says that those other medications remain effective. The agency explained that “Other products contain phenylephrine and another active ingredient (e.g., acetaminophen or ibuprofen) that treats symptoms other than congestion like headaches or muscle aches, and the presence of phenylephrine in these products does not affect how other active ingredients work to treat those symptoms.” So, if an oral cold medicine contains phenylephrine alongside other ingredients, it should still effectively treat the intended symptoms.
So is oral phenylephrine unsafe?
According to the FDA, oral phenylephrine is not unsafe when taken at the recommended dosage. The concern is not about safety, but rather about its efficacy in treating cold and flu symptoms. The FDA clarified that “neither FDA nor the committee raised concerns about safety issues with use of oral phenylephrine at the recommended dose.”
Why is CVS pulling oral phenylephrine cold meds?
CVS appears to be taking a proactive approach to consumer welfare by pulling oral phenylephrine cold medications from its shelves, even though it is not yet mandated by the FDA. CVS likely wants to provide its customers with effective remedies and is not willing to sell them a product that has been deemed ineffective by the FDA. It is important to note that CVS is only removing cold medications that have oral phenylephrine as the sole active ingredient, not those that contain other ingredients alongside phenylephrine.
What about other pharmacy chains?
While CVS has made the decision to remove oral phenylephrine cold medicines, it is unclear if other pharmacy chains, such as Walgreens, will follow suit. Walgreens has stated that they are closely monitoring the situation and actively partnering with their internal teams and suppliers to determine appropriate next steps. It remains to be seen whether other pharmacy chains will take similar actions as CVS in response to the FDA’s findings.
Could the FDA’s finding hurt big chain pharmacies’ bottom lines?
If the FDA mandates pharmacies to remove oral phenylephrine products from their shelves, it could potentially impact big chain pharmacies’ bottom lines. This is because oral phenylephrine cold medicines were popular and generated significant sales in the previous year. According to CNBC, 242 million bottles of drugs containing phenylephrine were sold last year, amounting to $1.8 billion in sales.
Ultimately, it is still uncertain how the FDA’s finding will impact the pharmacy industry as a whole. The focus should be on providing effective and safe medications to consumers, and the decisions made by pharmacy chains in response to these findings will shape the future of cold and flu remedies on their shelves.
