PANAMA CITY — 2006 · Major Tragedy
The Poisoned Cough Syrup Disaster
In 2006 cough syrup and other medicines made and distributed by Panama's Social Security Fund were found to contain toxic diethylene glycol sold as glycerin. After a rise in unexplained kidney-failure cases during the summer, an investigation with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention traced the cause to the contaminated syrup. The raw material had come from a Chinese producer via intermediary firms under a false label. Officially confirmed deaths exceeded 100, while families argued the true toll was far higher. In 2016 five people were sentenced to prison in the case.
- Date
- 2006
- Place
- Panama, Panama, Panama City, PA
- Category
- Major Tragedy
- Case Status
- Closed
- Coordinates
- 8.9824, -79.5199 ↗
Timeline of Events
- June-October 2006Unexplained kidney-failure deaths rose in Panama.
- October 2006An investigation with the CDC linked the deaths to contaminated cough syrup.
- 2007The ingredient was shown to be mislabelled diethylene glycol from China.
- July 2016A Panamanian court sentenced five people to prison.
Sources
- ABC News — Five jailed in Panama over toxic cough syrup scandal abc.net.au ↗
- CBS News — Panama links deaths to contaminated meds cbsnews.com ↗
- NBC News — 94 deaths in Panama from tainted medicine nbcnews.com ↗
- ABC News (Australia)
- CBS News
- NBC News
Source grade B: at least one verifiable linked source. If you spot a mistake or something missing, report it with "Suggest a correction" in the app.
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🕯️ This record was prepared with respect, in memory of those who lost their lives.