Four chemists who worked at the former drug company Able Laboratories have admitted to falsifying and altering data generated in FDA-required tests. The men, who were supervisors at the company, said they were acting under direction of the firm’s CEO in a secret project that “involved the falsification and manipulation of chemists' notebooks and binders." One of the men is also being charged with inside-trading and has pleaded guilty to securities fraud.

Able Laboratories manufactured more than 1 billion doses of generic versions of medications, including Percocet and Aleve, each year. They also brought in about $100 million in annual revenue, until the “testing problems” were disclosed in 2005. Since then, the CEO resigned and the company filed for bankruptcy and later was liquidated.

“Secret projects” like this one are no rarity at drug companies. Fortunately, more people by the day are discovering the games drug companies are involved in, and are choosing not to play them any more. Instead, they're beginning to take more responsibility for their health by adopting healthy lifestyles and staying away from unnecessary drugs and medical procedures.

USA Today March 8, 2007