Two more Chinese drugmakers have said that a blood-pressure medication they exported to Taiwan contained a potentially cancer-causing impurity, a month after the same problem at another Chinese manufacturer prompted a global recall.
Tianyu Pharm and Rundu Pharma said batches of valsartan, an active ingredient widely used in medications for high blood pressure and congestive heart failure, contained N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), which is believed to potentially cause cancer through long-term use.
Tianyu Pharm made its announcement yesterday in a statement to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, where both companies are listed, while Rundu said the same in an exchange statement on Friday.
Tianyu Pharm said the problem was caught before its valsartan was distributed to end users in Taiwan, while Rundu Pharma said its products made it onto Taiwan’s market, but would be recalled.
The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday ordered a recall of 24.21 million tablets of heart medicine valsartan supplied by Zhuhai Rundu Pharmaceutical Co were found to be tainted.
The recall was instigated after it was discovered that Zhuhai’s valsartan contained NDMA.
The four types of medicines affected are the Valsart FC Tab 160mg, Valsart FC Tab 80 mg, Asartan FC Tab 5/80mg and the Valsart-H FC Tablets 80/12.5mg, which is produced by Standard Chem & Pharm Co in Taiwan.
More than 10 million tablets from six types of valsartan medicine supplied by Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceuticals were recalled last month after they were found to be tainted by NDMA.
A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck off the coast of Hualien County in eastern Taiwan at 7pm yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The epicenter of the temblor was at sea, about 69.9km south of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 30.9km, it said. There were no immediate reports of damage resulting from the quake. The earthquake’s intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was highest in Taitung County’s Changbin Township (長濱), where it measured 5 on Taiwan’s seven-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 4 in Hualien, Nantou, Chiayi, Yunlin, Changhua and Miaoli counties, as well as
Credit departments of farmers’ and fishers’ associations blocked a total of more than NT$180 million (US$6.01 million) from being lost to scams last year, National Police Agency (NPA) data showed. The Agricultural Finance Agency (AFA) said last week that staff of farmers’ and fishers’ associations’ credit departments are required to implement fraud prevention measures when they serve clients at the counter. They would ask clients about personal financial management activities whenever they suspect there might be a fraud situation, and would immediately report the incident to local authorities, which would send police officers to the site to help, it said. NPA data showed
ENERGY RESILIENCE: Although Alaska is open for investments, Taiwan is sourcing its gas from the Middle East, and the sea routes carry risks, Ho Cheng-hui said US government officials’ high-profile reception of a Taiwanese representative at the Alaska Sustainable Energy Conference indicated the emergence of an Indo-Pacific energy resilience alliance, an academic said. Presidential Office Secretary-General Pan Men-an (潘孟安) attended the conference in Alaska on Thursday last week at the invitation of the US government. Pan visited oil and gas facilities with senior US officials, including US Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, US Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy and US Senator Daniel Sullivan. Pan attending the conference on behalf of President William Lai (賴清德) shows a significant elevation in diplomatic representation,
The Taipei MRT is to begin accepting mobile payment services in the fall, Taipei Rapid Transit Corp said on Saturday. When the company finishes the installation of new payment units at ticketing gates in October, MRT passengers can use credit cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay, the operator said. In addition, the MRT would also provide QR payment codes — which would be compatible with Line Pay, Jkopay, iPass Money, PXPay Plus, EasyWallet, iCash Pay, Taiwan Pay and Taishin Pay — to access the railway system. Currently, passengers can access the Taipei MRT by buying a single-journey token or using EasyCard,
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