American import ban on eye drops: Similasan takes a stand Family business is defrauded of thousands of francs: “We have never experienced anything like this before”

Pharmaceutical company Similasan, headquartered in Jonen AG, has commented on the import ban on the company’s eye drops imposed by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The Swiss market and other markets are not affected.

The current situation, according to which the FDA has tightened requirements for several eye drop manufacturers, only affects the US market, Similasan said when asked by the Keystone-SDA news agency.

All Similasan eye drops offered in the US are affected, with the main question being the product description on the packaging, the company continued. Customer safety is never jeopardized by the use of Similasan products. The products could still be used safely.

Problems with competing products

According to Similasan, a total of eight companies received a so-called ‘import alert’ as of September 11. Manufacturers of homeopathic products are particularly affected because their products have special approval status in the US. Similasan is working closely with the FDA to continue to ensure increased safety requirements when marketing the products in the US and to clarify this matter as quickly as possible.

In the first quarter of 2023, a number of serious adverse events (blindness and deaths) occurred with competing products on the US market. However, these products and issues have nothing to do with Similasan, the company said.

The company Similasan, which produces in Jonen AG, has been active on the American market since 1987 and, according to its own calculations, has sold more than 100 million packs of homeopathic eye drops there.

(dsc/sda)