AG warns Chinese fentanyl could be contaminating weight loss drugs in U.S.

NASHVILLE — Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti joined 19 other states in issuing a letter to the White House warning against weight loss drug ingredients sourced from Chinese-owned businesses. The coalition of attorneys general sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio earlier this month, expressing concern that the FDA's creation of a "Green List" has allowed unverified Chinese drugs to slip into the U.S. — potentially contaminated with fentanyl. The FDA created the Green List in September of last year in an effort to combat unverified GLP-1 ingredients from foreign sources from entering the U.S. market. The coalition of attorneys general, however, say the list has had the opposite effect. "The FDA has created a new vulnerability in this already fragile supply chain by giving Chinese suppliers a green light to ship unapproved, knock-off product to America without detention or inspection… If the government cannot verify the true source, chain of custody, and downstream use of these ingredients in real time, a Green List can quickly become a laundering channel rather than a safeguard." The letter points to a recent inspection of a Chinese-based company, Harbin, that found the company had purchased knock-off semaglutide from a non-FDA approved source. Harbin used its status as a "Green List" company to conceal the true source of the drugs. The letter notes the issue's similarity to the Heparin crisis from 2008, in which adulterated heparin imported from China killed 81 people and seriously injured nearly 800. "Only legitimate medicines from accountable sources should be allowed into our country," said Skrmetti in a statement. "Foreign suppliers who exploit weaknesses in our supply chain to import relabeled or adulterated products pose risks to both our public health and our national security. Tennessee will keep working with our federal partners and our fellow states to protect the integrity of medicine in America."