Governor Patrick Orders Crackdown On Compounding Pharmacies

Massachusetts state officials say they found unclean conditions including visible black specks of fungus in steroids made by a pharmacy linked to a deadly outbreak of meningitis. Governor Deval Patrick says the state has moved to revoke the license of the New England Compounding Center and three pharmacists.  State officials say they found unclean conditions at the company and evidence it was making drugs for general distribution, a violation of its license.  Patrick says he's ordered regulators to conduct surprise inspections at similar types of pharmacies.

An attorney for a Massachusetts company linked to a deadly meningitis outbreak says it's 'hard to imagine' state regulators didn't know the scale of its operations because it's worked so closely with them.  The statement by New England Compounding Center attorney Paul Cirel came Tuesday after Gov. Patrick announced the state has moved to revoke the company's operating license.

The company's attorney says regulators have always had complete access to the facility and inspected it last summer. He says the company's transparency shows its good-faith intention to operate within the bounds of its license.  (Associated Press)