Dangerous Doses: How Counterfeiters Are Contaminating America's Drug Supply

Of the many well-documented horror stories associated with the U.S. Healthcare System, none are more shocking and hard to believe than that exposed by investigative reporter Katherine Eban in Dangerous Doses: How Counterfeiters are Contaminating America’s Drug Supply. By riding shotgun with a small group of investigators in South Florida who refer to themselves as "The Five Horsemen of the Apocalypse," Eban outlines in chilling detail a vast system of criminality underpinning the wholesale trade of prescription drugs throughout the country. The Horsemen are a committed and colorful cast of characters not even the best crime novelist could create, who are hopelessly underpaid, rarely sleep, receive little respect, and face bureaucratic obstacles at every turn as they fight to keep tainted drugs out of hospitals and off pharmacy shelves. Their chief target is Michael Carlow, a flamboyant ex-con turned pharmaceutical wholesaler who has amassed millions through the sale of both stolen and fake prescription drugs. The more evidence the Horsemen uncover about Carlow’s network of shell companies, phony labeling techniques, Medicare scams, and other tricks of the trade, the more deadly the picture becomes. By the end, you don’t only want to see Carlow and his associates behind bars, but the entire pharmaceutical industry put on trial. You also want to give a copy of Dangerous Doses to everyone you know, as it is not just a great page turner but an important book that demands the widest possible audience. --Patrick Jennings