As Americans debate whether to import prescription drugs from Canada to relieve rising costs, a new government report finds that 16% of medicines examined could not be traced back to their manufacturers, underscoring ongoing concerns about the security of the pharmaceutical supply chain.
Specifically, documentation was lacking or mismatched for six of 44 so-called high-risk prescription drugs, although in one instance, a wholesaler refused to provide paperwork, according to the report from the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services, which reviewed Medicare Part D claims that were billed between January and May 2018.
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