University of Florida News

The Food and Drug Administration does not regulate the information your pharmacy gives you with a standard prescription. Only some high-risk drugs get that oversight. Now the agency’s asked University of Florida researchers to assess the quality of information now provided.

Carole Kimberlin/UF pharmacy professor: “Some of the quality of that information has not improved. The text is very dense, it’s difficult to read, it’s at a reading level that’s beyond what many consumers would be able to comprehend.”

Experts say the FDA is not necessarily trying to provide more information since overloading the patient can also pose a risk as well.

Carole Kimberlin/UF pharmacy professor: “When side effects are identified, there’s just a long list. Many of which may not be clinically significant. So it’s hard for the patient to know what’s important and what’s not.”

Congress sets goals for the pharmacies to reach in creating these inserts, but experts say that’s not the same as having a regulatory authority.

(See related post: Consumer medication information falls short, UF researchers say)