For the third time, pharmaceutical company Merck is petitioning the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for permission to make the popular drug Mevacor (lovastatin) available for over the counter purchase.
Merck has twice before submitted its proposal to the regulatory body - first in 2000, then again in 2005. Both times the FDA ruled that there was sufficient reason to maintain the status of Mevacor as prescription only.
Mevacor, a member of the statin family of drugs, is used to lower bad cholesterol and raise or maintain good cholesterol. Statins are a proven therapy for those with high cholesterol levels, especially in the setting of high blood pressure.
Experts are split on the idea of making Mevacor available to the public. Dr. Sidney Wolfe, a leading figure in public health and director of the Public Citizen Health Research Group sees the move as a negative, stating the opinion that most patients are not adequately equipped to judge on their own if their health situation would benefit from the drug. Yet Dr. Antonio Gotto, a former American Heart Association President and current dean of New York's Cornell Medical College says the move is an important step in fostering the idea that patients should take more responsibility for their own health care.
Mevacor, like all statin drugs, requires regular monitoring and blood tests to assess progress and prevent complications related to the liver.
