Provide names of other journalists involved.
Katherine Eban
List date(s) this work was published or aired.
11-Apr-11
Provide a brief synopsis of the story or stories, including any significant findings.
Fortune investigated the rising problem of organized criminal gangs in the U.S. stealing prescription medicine in increasingly audacious heists. Contrary to the assumption that these drugs are getting shipped overseas, Fortune learned that most frequently, stolen name-brand pharmaceutical are resold into the American drug supply, through a shady network of middlemen. Fortune also uncovered for the first time the pathway of stolen drugs reintroduced into the supply chain that reached patients and sickened them. Fortune learned that Kroger, one of the nation’s largest drugstore chains, ignored direct warnings from Novo Nordisk about its long-acting insulin stolen in a Tennessee truck heist and purchased the discounted drugs from a secondary wholesaler with a troubling track record. Patients who took the improperly handled drug saw their blood sugar spike and their diabetes spiral out of control. The article also found that despite these risks to patients, drug companies have rarely taken the precautions necessary to safeguard their drugs from theft; they are reluctant to pay security costs up front when they are protected by insurance on the back end. Some details that Fortune obtained were so confidential that government officials requested that the magazine not publish certain information because it could result in harm to a government informant. After careful deliberation, Fortune did publish most– but not all– of the information it obtained.
Explain types of documents, data or Internet resources used. Were FOI or public records act requests required? How did this affect the work?
To reconstruct the path of the stolen Levemir, the article relied extensively on police reports, court records including search warrant affidavits, subpoenas and civil litigation. Many of these records were found on PACER. The article also mined FDA adverse event reports, and other public FDA databases. By using these resources, Fortune was able to reconstruct the multiple ongoing investigations into pharmaceutical theft, and identify who had handled the drugs, how they re-entered the supply chain and where they reached patients.
Explain types of human sources used.
Extensive interviews with law enforcement officials, pharmaceutical executives, security consultants, doctors, corporate lawyers, wholesale distributors and government officials from ICE and FDA.
Results:
Since the article appeared, the author has been contacted by three separate U.S. congressional committees as well as the Health and Human Services office of the inspector general, all looking to investigate the problem of pharmaceutical theft and its corruption of the supply chain.
Follow-up (if any). Have you run a correction or clarification on the report or has anyone come forward to challenge its accuracy? If so, please explain.
There has been no challenge to the article’s accuracy and no correction has been issued.
Advice to other journalists planning a similar story or project.
Police reports and PACER. I sifted through more electronic court records than I care to remember. However, if you know adulterated medicine reached consumers and want to try and track it through the supply chain, often police reports can give you a good starting point, and the court records can help guide you through criminal investigations and civil litigation within the supply chain.