By Chantal Da Silva -
NBC News
Drugmaker Pfizer has ordered more than four million packets of the migraine medication Nurtec ODT to be recalled due to the risk of poisoning from failures in the child-resistant packaging system.
The company is recalling 4.2 million packets of Nurtec ODT (rimegepant) with eight 75-milligram orally dissolved tablets each, the Consumer Product Safety Commission reported.
Whoever has purchased these products will be able to receive a free childproof bag to store them, he added.
The defective packages were distributed with prescription in pharmacies across the country between December 2021 and March 2023, it said.
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The Packaging Poison Prevention Act states that prescription drugs must be packaged in such a way that children cannot easily open them.
"The packaging of the [recalled] products is not child-resistant, increasing the risk that a young child could be poisoned if they ingest the contents," the commission warned.
Presentation of the drug Nurtec ODT in a file image.Pfizer
Federal authorities asked consumers to "immediately ensure that the product is out of the sight and reach of children and to contact Pfizer for a free child-resistant bag to store it."
Once they secure the contents in a child-resistant bag, they can continue to use it as directed, they said.
Nurtec ODT shared the news of the recall on Twitter and posted a statement on its website saying that Pfizer "has recently determined that the packaging does not meet the requirements for oral prescription drugs, which could cause harm to young children if they ingest the content.
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Although patients will be able to keep the product if they store it safely, Nurtec ODT clarified that the safety commission "uses the term
recall
to describe any repair, replacement, refund, or notice."
Pfizer announced that it is working on new packaging for its drug to meet child safety requirements.
In the meantime, pharmacies will deliver the medication to customers with prescriptions in bottles with child-resistant caps.