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CVS ditches common cold meds after FDA advisers say they're useless

arstechnica.com

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Re: CVS ditches common cold meds after FDA advisers say they're useless

#81

Post by HDThoreaun »

crtracker wrote: post #72
tptacek wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's already easy to buy the stuff that works. You just have to go up to the counter and ask. You have to show ID, just like you do for liquor (and, because purchases of psuedoephedrine are rate-limited, they're going to log your purchase). You'll need to get over that, because I don't think the rate limit is going anywhere: psuedoephedrine essentially is methamphetamine, and it's the worst conceivable kind: the kind…

It's not easy in my state. It goes like this: go to inside counter of an open pharmacy (can't use drive thru for it). Wait, for a long time (aren't all of your pharmacies massively overloaded with 30-60m lines? ours are). Ask for a 96-count sudafed (generic or regular) and hope they have it. If they don't, get 48. If they don't, get 24 (forget that I need 2 tabs every day as prescribed by my doctor -- yet can only bu…

Man, your state sounds horrible. Only problem with pharmacies around here is they're always out of adderall.

Re: CVS ditches common cold meds after FDA advisers say they're useless

#82

Post by dragonwriter »

ekianjo wrote: post #55
jeroenhd wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's nothing wrong with buying homoeopathic tinctures if you like them, but putting them right next to medicine legitimises them for those who don't know any better. It's not like these tinctures are hand-crafted by some wise old shaman, they're mass produced by billion dollar companies profiting off the association with proven medicine. The confusion and misinformation is problematic, not the sale of the tincture…

Homeopathic remedies should be labeled as "does not contain any active ingredient and was never ever proven to do anything."

> Homeopathic remedies should be labeled as "does not contain any active ingredient and was never ever proven to do anything."

Only if they had the kind of quality control to assure that they were actually homeopathic dilutions. IIRC, a number have caused injury by having dangerous levels of their supposed “active ingredient” (“precursor” might be better for what it is supposed to be, I guess).

Re: CVS ditches common cold meds after FDA advisers say they're useless

#83

Post by jen20 »

Waterluvian wrote: post #68
dartos wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is a difficult comment to parse

People blissfully treated with placebos because the stuff that actually worked can be kind of hardcore. My (I’ve learned: unpopular) opinion is that not everything is a cosmic wrongness that demands a 1Hr Photo of a fix. It’s okay to just work through a cold with rest and water and warm beverages.

> It’s okay to just work through a cold with rest and water and warm beverages.

Spot the person with no children and no job responsibilities!

Re: CVS ditches common cold meds after FDA advisers say they're useless

#84

Post by wutwutwat »

techsupporter wrote: post #57
tptacek wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's already easy to buy the stuff that works. You just have to go up to the counter and ask. You have to show ID, just like you do for liquor (and, because purchases of psuedoephedrine are rate-limited, they're going to log your purchase). You'll need to get over that, because I don't think the rate limit is going anywhere: psuedoephedrine essentially is methamphetamine, and it's the worst conceivable kind: the kind…

> You just have to go up to the counter and ask. You have to show ID, just like you do for liquor (and, because purchases of psuedoephedrine are rate-limited, they're going to log your purchase) Up to the counter and ask...when the counter is open that is increasingly a problem as pharmacies close and hours are limited (the two nearest me close at 6pm, right at the end of working hours). Show ID...that the pharmacist…

> Up to the counter and ask...when the counter is open that is increasingly a problem as pharmacies close and hours are limited (the two nearest me close at 6pm, right at the end of working hours).

Probably covered by the FMLA or any boss who isn't an asshole, or since it's OTC, have someone grab it for you, or get it on your lunch, or task rabbit it.

> Show ID...that the pharmacist will accept (not all of us drive or have a driver license).

If you don't have an acceptable state ID the pharmacy not giving you cold meds is the least of your hurdles. Go get an ID, you need it for anything offical that requires proof of ID. This isn't the medication rate limits fault.

> Rate-limited...at a quantity too low for a household that has a sinus infection running around.

My state allows 9 grams every 30 days, which should be plenty. BUT, that rate limiting is not checked/enforced statewide, meaning you can go to one store and get some and down the road to the next store and get some, and so can the other adults in your household. The limits are plenty for intended use. Only people wanting meth manufacture amounts complain that 9 grams in 30 days per store is too low.

> So, no, it's not already easy. Canadians can go into a Costco and buy as much as they like and apparently it's not an entire nation of Walter Whites up there so what makes us so special?

It's pretty easy. When you have an ID like every adult should have, and a normal size household, stepping out at lunch or running to a late night rx place and asking for a box or two of sudafed is literally as easy as buying booze or smokes, show your id, pay the person, leave. And btw if you checkout bluelight or /r/meth, our neighbors up north are having a field day cooking meth a lot of which is coming across the border into the US. No criminal enterprise is going to have unrestricted access to the key ingredient for a super addictive drug and pass on utilizing it.

Re: CVS ditches common cold meds after FDA advisers say they're useless

#85

Post by derbOac »

irons wrote: post #48
Alex3917 wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Wishful thinking, but next up should be homeopathic snake-oil. It sounds like it's serving a useful purpose. > "I know so many people… hell, I've done this myself, I've bought [a homeopathic] product by mistake," Little said. In a trip to the drug store while sick or as a weary parent of a miserably ill child, it's easy to mistakenly pick up a homeopathic product in haste or the fog of infection. If folks are going…

If you're assuming that the homeopathic stuff is incapable of harming anyone, you're mistaken. https://arstechnica.com/health/2023/08/fda-warns-amazon-to-s...

The reason to remove such products is because they contain dangerous agents that aren't being disclosed. The same would be said of any scientifically well-validated product that was tainted. If bottles of paracetamol/acetaminophen were contaminated with toxic mold, those should be removed too I think.

I personally think the FDA should be more focused on these kinds of things — contamination and labeling fraud — and less on regulation of efficacy or access. We need more access and competition in the US, not less.

Re: CVS ditches common cold meds after FDA advisers say they're useless

#86

Post by [deleted] »

huytersd wrote: post #61
cm2187 wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am not sure why the downvote. It keeps hypochondriac people away from the medical system by giving them essentially placebos. Everyone is happy.

No, you have people that think those “placebos” are real medicine and end up killing their kids because of it.

[deleted]

Re: CVS ditches common cold meds after FDA advisers say they're useless

#87

Post by strifey »

hcurtiss wrote: post #53
strifey wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Real sudafed is OTC, you just need to ask for it at the counter. No prescription is required. They just don't have it on shelves, because they require you to show your ID when purchasing it. I'm assuming this is so they can track how much a person is buying to track people who are using it for illicit purposes.

Oregon requires a prescription.

Oof, remind me not to move there. I wouldn't survive an allergy season. Though to be fair, I imagine most GPs would write a prescription pretty quick.

Re: CVS ditches common cold meds after FDA advisers say they're useless

#88

Post by jjulius »

hcurtiss wrote: post #44
tptacek wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's already easy to buy the stuff that works. You just have to go up to the counter and ask. You have to show ID, just like you do for liquor (and, because purchases of psuedoephedrine are rate-limited, they're going to log your purchase). You'll need to get over that, because I don't think the rate limit is going anywhere: psuedoephedrine essentially is methamphetamine, and it's the worst conceivable kind: the kind…

Yeah, Oregon still requires a prescription for pseudoephedrine. And it's infuriating.

You haven't needed a prescription to purchase products with pseudoephedrine in them in Oregon since January 1, 2022.

Re: CVS ditches common cold meds after FDA advisers say they're useless

#89

Post by jrockway »

crtracker wrote: post #72
tptacek wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's already easy to buy the stuff that works. You just have to go up to the counter and ask. You have to show ID, just like you do for liquor (and, because purchases of psuedoephedrine are rate-limited, they're going to log your purchase). You'll need to get over that, because I don't think the rate limit is going anywhere: psuedoephedrine essentially is methamphetamine, and it's the worst conceivable kind: the kind…

It's not easy in my state. It goes like this: go to inside counter of an open pharmacy (can't use drive thru for it). Wait, for a long time (aren't all of your pharmacies massively overloaded with 30-60m lines? ours are). Ask for a 96-count sudafed (generic or regular) and hope they have it. If they don't, get 48. If they don't, get 24 (forget that I need 2 tabs every day as prescribed by my doctor -- yet can only bu…

I asked my doctor to write me a prescription for pseudoephedrine once. They rip open the box (before you get to the pharmacy), dump the pills into a standard pill bottle, and then charge you $5 instead of $11. No ID / signing the ledger required!

But yeah, the whole process is very annoying. I think this news about the ineffective stuff being withdrawn is good for us; with more demand for the stuff that works, pharmacies will have to hire more people to comply with the regulations, driving profits down, and finally a lobbyist that matters will be in front of Congress.

Re: CVS ditches common cold meds after FDA advisers say they're useless

#90

Post by pyrophane »

My understanding is that they are only removing products that ONLY contain Phenylephrine, which means they will still sell it when it is part of multiple-ingredient formulations, which are in themselves kind of a scam.

For example, many OTC "severe cold/flu" formulations contain:

- Acetaminophen. Potentially helpful for the body aches that come with the flu, but a lot of the time when I'm sick, I don't exactly need or benefit from a pain reliever. If you have a fever it can reduce it, but for a minor fever I'm not sure that is necessary.

- A cough suppressant (Dextromethorphan) and an expectorant (Guaifenesin). Most recommendations I've read advise taking one or the other depending on the type of the cough, but not both. For a productive cough, a cough suppressant can be counterproductive.

- For PM formulations, an antihistamine as a sleep aid.

- And of course Phenylephrine as a decongestant, which doesn't work.

People feel sick and they go in and just say "I'll take whatever is strongest" and they get overcharged for these weird formulations that are sort of kitchen-sink type things. I guess they are mostly harmless but you wind of spending $20 for pennies worth of out-of-patent ingredients that might actually make you feel a bit worse.

And yeah, if you are actually congested, go to the pharmacy counter and get Pseudoephedrine. It costs next to nothing and in my experience works.

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