State Pharmacy Director Fired For Ignoring Complaint Over NECC Drug Shipments

November 8, 2012

Lawrence LeBlond for redOrbit.com Your Universe Online

Massachusetts Board of Pharmacy director James D. Coffey has been fired after allegedly ignoring complaints that Framingham-based New England Compounding Center (NECC) had illegally shipped bulk orders of drugs to Colorado hospitals, reports Boston.coms Kay Lazar.

The shipments were in direct violation of Colorados state licenses, according to MA state health officials. Yet, the long-time director of the pharmacy board failed to take action on the complaint, which had been reported back in July.

NECC, blamed for the deadly meningitis outbreak that has so far claimed 31 deaths and has sickened hundreds, was shut down in October after federal officials learned the company had shipped some 17,000 vials of contaminated drugs to 76 medical facilities in 23 states.

However, if the July complaint was handled appropriately, it stands to reason that at least a third of the fungal meningitis cases may have been avoided.

The Colorado Board of Pharmacy had contacted Coffey on July 26 about the problem, and Coffey had forwarded the information to board attorney Susan Manning, who has been placed on administrative leave, and other department inspectors. Despite contacting officials, he failed to order an investigation into the issue, Dr. Lauren Smith, interim commissioner of the Mass Dept of Public Health, said in a statement.

Smith said since the director is the one person responsible for ordering an investigation, Coffey was the sole person fired.

It is incomprehensible that Mr. Coffey and Ms. Manning did not act on the Colorado complaint given NECCs past, and their responsibility to investigate complaints, Smith said.

Even once the outbreak became public, the Pharmacy Board staff failed to disclose the existence of the complaint to the Dept of Public Health, the agency that oversees the board, according to Smith, adding there was no evidence either Coffey or Manning made any attempt to alert the board itself.

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State Pharmacy Director Fired For Ignoring Complaint Over NECC Drug Shipments