Two former pharmacists were sentenced to federal prison this week for distributing tainted drugs in 2011 to patients at several hospitals in the Birmingham, Ala., region. Nine of the patients who received the tainted drugs developed bloodstream infections and died, AL.com reports.
The pharmacists distributed the intravenous drug Total Parenteral Nutrition, a liquid nutrition administered to patients who cannot or should not eat. According to federal authorities, the amino acid used to compound the TPN was contaminated with the bacteria Serratia marcescens, a type of Gram-negative Enterobacteriaceae, after it was prepared, packed or held under insanitary conditions.
The pharmacists distributed the tainted drug to patients between March 5 and March 15, 2011. All total, 19 hospital patients developed S. marcescens bloodstream infections and nine died.
According to U.S. Department of Justice statement released Tuesday, the two pharmacists — David Allen and Timothy Rogers — pleaded guilty to misdemeanor violations of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. Mr. Allen was sentenced to 12 months in prison and Mr. Rogers was sentenced to 10 months in prison.
Following their imprisonment, both defendants are also sentenced to one year of supervised release and a $5,000 fine, according to the report.
"Producing unsafe and contaminated drugs poses a serious threat to the U.S. public health and cannot be tolerated," FDA Office of Criminal Investigations Director George Karavetsos told AL.com. "The FDA remains fully committed to aggressively pursuing those who place unsuspecting American consumers at risk by distributing adulterated drugs."
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