Pfizer Canada released an advisory notice regarding a manufacturing issue that may affect a very small quantity of EpiPen® and EpiPen Jr® auto-injectors in Canada.
The issue with these devices is that they may not slide out of their plastic carrier tube easily, which could delay or potentially prevent emergency treatment. The problem is with the open rim of the plastic carrier tube, and not with the auto-injector itself. The devices impacted can be the EpiPen 0.3 mg or EpiPen Jr 0.15 mg doses with expiry dates up to and including September 2020. Please note that this issue impacts a very small number of devices, it is estimated to be 2 auto-injectors out of every 1 million.
Please read Pfizer’s notice for further information. This is not a product recall.
How you can check to see if your device is affected
- Check the expiry dates of your EpiPens – impacted devices have an expiry date up to and including September 2020.
- Ensure your devices can be easily removed from the carrier tube.
- If you’re not sure if your devices have been impacted, ask your local pharmacist to examine them for you.
- Request replacement devices if required.
Advocating on your behalf
- We are working with Health Canada and other stakeholders on a long-term goal to ensure there will always be more than one supplier of this life-saving medication.
- Ensuring better access to epinephrine is one of our priorities in the National Food Allergy Action Plan.
- Help us advocate during this federal election to make the National Food Allergy Action Plan a priority. Reach out to your candidates and ask what they are doing about ensuring you have access to life-saving medication. Check out the #FoodAllergyVotes section and election update below to learn more on how you can #MakeFoodAllergyCount.
For further information or questions on the EpiPen devices, please contact Pfizer Canada directly at 1-877-EPIPEN1 (1-877-374-7361). It’s important they hear from you directly.
Tags: EpiPen