Committee ruled last month that oral phenylephrine is not effective in easing congestion<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
By Physician\u2019s Briefing Staff HealthDay Reporter<\/b><\/p>\n
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FRIDAY, Oct. 20, 2023 (HealthDay News) — CVS Health plans to pull cold medications that contain phenylephrine from its store shelves after federal regulators determined recently that the decongestant does not work.<\/p>\n
Oral phenylephrine is an active ingredient in such well-known products as Sudafed and Dayquil. A U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisory committee ruled<\/a> last month that the ingredient was useless in easing congestion.<\/p>\n “We are removing certain oral cough and cold products that contain phenylephrine as the only active ingredient from CVS Pharmacy stores,” the company told CBS MoneyWatch<\/em>. “Other oral cough and cold products will continue to be offered to meet consumer needs.”<\/p>\n Another drugstore chain, Walgreens, said it “follows FDA regulations,” but did not say if it would stop selling the medications.<\/p>\n “We are closely monitoring the situation and actively partnering with the Walgreens Office of Clinical Integrity and suppliers on appropriate next steps,” a spokesperson told CBS MoneyWatch<\/em>.<\/p>\n Medications that contain phenylephrine account for $1.8 billion in annual sales, according to FDA data.<\/p>\n