- My Forums
- Tiger Rant
- LSU Recruiting
- SEC Rant
- Saints Talk
- Pelicans Talk
- More Sports Board
- Fantasy Sports
- Golf Board
- Soccer Board
- O-T Lounge
- Tech Board
- Home/Garden Board
- Outdoor Board
- Health/Fitness Board
- Movie/TV Board
- Book Board
- Music Board
- Political Talk
- Money Talk
- Fark Board
- Gaming Board
- Travel Board
- Food/Drink Board
- Ticket Exchange
- TD Help Board
Customize My Forums- View All Forums
- Show Left Links
- Topic Sort Options
- Trending Topics
- Recent Topics
- Active Topics
Started By
Message
re: FDA Chief wants all meds to be over the counter unless addictive
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:05 am to NineLineBind
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:05 am to NineLineBind
I think this is part of the point. Why legislate to contain costs of insurance, expand access to providers trained in exercising medical judgement and how to safely administer medications when we can just let people assume the risks and the costs themselves. We have a saying in our field that the doctor who treats himself has a fool for a patient - and that's meant to caution people who have medical training about the risks of self-treatment.
1
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:07 am to onmymedicalgrind
quote:
Okay, I’m assuming you disagree with “weeks.” How long do you think it will take? Bc it will happen eventually if anyone can just buy their own abx for a run of the mill viral URI.
What percentage of the world already has access over the counter?
2/3, 3/4, more?
That's a pretty weak argument that the west needs a script to prevent a super bug.
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:11 am to BCreed1
quote:
That's a fact. A simple search would show posters that in ASIA, Africa, Europe...etc Many nations sell them OTC.
Can you cite where you see that in Europe, antibiotics are allowed OTC?
I am seeing that the EU requires a prescription for all antibiotics, other than some topical creams. Might go under the radar in some european countries but where is it actually legal in the EU from your research?
This post was edited on 2/18/26 at 11:13 am
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:11 am to onmymedicalgrind
quote:It is a go-to for WAY too many physicians. It is mind-boggling.
There will be superbugs in like a week.
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:13 am to WhiskeyThrottle
quote:I have to hire Smurfs during allergy season.
Make sudafed available on the shelf again.
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:14 am to Dee_oh_Dee
It depends on what you mean by a superbug - presumably has resistance to all known antibiotics. Thankfully we don't have those, but we have plenty with multi-drug antibiotic resistance. They mean harder to treat infections, longer to get better, more expensive, often only available by IV (so you have to be in hospital where you're at risk of nosocomial infections), more side effects of the big gun antibiotics. We'd be speeding up the clock on antibiotic resistance and it's under-invested in because these meds aren't big money-makers, but that would probably change in a world of OTC antibiotics.
This post was edited on 2/18/26 at 11:15 am
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:16 am to onmymedicalgrind
quote:
quote:
unless a drug is unsafe
How will this be determined?
I don't think any of them are "safe" but some have blackbox warnings included. People should be made aware of all the "side effects" of pharmaceuticals.
https://www.drugs.com/
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:17 am to Jjdoc
I disagree with this, it will put most pharmacists out of business
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:18 am to Jjdoc
Forgot to bring a med I take daily on a recent vacation to Mexico. It was easier to get there than it would have been in another state for a tenth of the cost.
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:18 am to Jjdoc
This is an exceedingly poor policy.
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:19 am to lepdagod
Seems like two different instincts here. One is the precautionary “more casual access could push resistance” & the other is “if that’s true we should see it where access is looser”.
The tricky part is that resistance doesn’t show up as “people I know got into trouble”, it shows up in surveillance data over years. Some countries that had easy access actually tightened rules after seeing rising resistance, but it’s also not the only factor - prescribing culture and stewardship matter a lot.
Probably the useful question is what do the actual trends look like in places with OTC access?
The tricky part is that resistance doesn’t show up as “people I know got into trouble”, it shows up in surveillance data over years. Some countries that had easy access actually tightened rules after seeing rising resistance, but it’s also not the only factor - prescribing culture and stewardship matter a lot.
Probably the useful question is what do the actual trends look like in places with OTC access?
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:21 am to onmymedicalgrind
quote:i'm almost positive if i gobble down a whole bottle of ibuprofen i'll die
unless a drug is unsafe
How will this be determined?
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:33 am to crazy4lsu
I’m not sure it’s even a policy yet ( it reads more like a slogan).
“Everything OTC unless unsafe/addictive/needs monitoring” only becomes meaningful once you define monitoring (labs? interaction checks? pregnancy risk? BP follow-up?) and specify the decision pathway for Rx --> OTC switches.
The interesting question isn’t whether the idea is good or bad - it’s what criteria and guardrails you’d actually use. Antibiotics, pseudoephedrine, narrow therapeutic index drugs, pharmacist-gated meds… they all land differently once you get specific.
“Everything OTC unless unsafe/addictive/needs monitoring” only becomes meaningful once you define monitoring (labs? interaction checks? pregnancy risk? BP follow-up?) and specify the decision pathway for Rx --> OTC switches.
The interesting question isn’t whether the idea is good or bad - it’s what criteria and guardrails you’d actually use. Antibiotics, pseudoephedrine, narrow therapeutic index drugs, pharmacist-gated meds… they all land differently once you get specific.
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:33 am to TigerDoc
quote:
Probably the useful question is what do the actual trends look like in places with OTC access?
It does not look great in Colombia, where I know many antibiotics (among other drugs) are sold over the counter. The resistance rate for the first-line medications for E. coli, fluoroquinolones and TMP/SMX, appear to have resistance rates above 30% in all the tested specimens. Aminopenicillins, like amoxicillin and ampicillin, have resistance rates above 60%.
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:40 am to WhiskeyThrottle
quote:
Almost anything can be addictive.
quote:
You should work on your addiction to posting here.
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:41 am to SlowFlowPro
quote:
Almost anything can be addictive.
No.
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:42 am to TigerDoc
quote:
The interesting question isn’t whether the idea is good or bad - it’s what criteria and guardrails you’d actually use. Antibiotics, pseudoephedrine, narrow therapeutic index drugs, pharmacist-gated meds… they all land differently once you get specific.
I'm not sure the policy makers care about the specifics all that much. You can make the argument that even medications like NSAIDs should be more closely monitored given their sundry effects on the body.
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:44 am to crazy4lsu
I think a lot of drugs that could’ve been moved OTC have already been moved OTC.
We don’t need people being able to purchase their own Zpack.
We don’t need people being able to purchase their own Zpack.
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:48 am to NineLineBind
quote:Again, you seem to presuppose the AMA gives a rats arse about "the monopoly." The only thing the AMA cares about is royalty revenue from licensing Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) codes.
it’s about keeping the monopoly intact.
Posted on 2/18/26 at 11:50 am to Jjdoc
quote:
FDA Chief wants all meds to be over the counter unless addictive
Page 4 of 7
Popular
Back to top
Follow TigerDroppings for LSU Football News