The safety and effectiveness of generic drugs cannot be guaranteed.

Whenever Virginia resident Marilynn Monroe refills her ADHD medication, she feels like she’s “playing Russian Roulette.” Why? Because she’s never certain which version of her medication she’ll receive – and what kinds of undesired side effects she’ll have as a result.

Nine out of 10 prescriptions filled in the U.S. are for generic drugs. This means that millions of people, like Marilynn, rely on generic medications. The assumption is that these drugs  are just as safe and effective as their brand-name counterparts. In many cases, they are. But not always. What’s more, there are differences from one generic manufacturer to another, and even from one batch to another.

Studies have shown that certain generic drugs can vary in how they’re manufactured, how they’re absorbed, what their dose is, if they contain contaminants, , and what side effects they might cause. For complex conditions like ADHD, these FDA oversight gaps mean that people are often in the dark when it comes to the medications they trust.

That’s where MedShadow comes in.

We’re raising awareness about the risks of some generic medications — not to scare you, but to educate and empower you so that you can make the best decisions for your personal health. Most people don’t know that generic drugs aren’t always identical to brand-name versions. Or that the oversight process for brands and generics is not exactly the same. Or that some generics are sourced from overseas facilities with deeply troubling safety records.

Our goal is simple: Make sure people know what they’re taking.
But we can’t do it alone.

How Your Support Helps:

Donor support makes MedShadow’s work possible across all our content areas, including investigative reporting, webinars, resource guides, newsletters, social media posts and more.

MedShadow’s Work Includes:

• Empowering Consumers. Expert-informed webinars, independent journalism, and educational videos help people make better-informed medication decisions.
• Providing clear, sharable resources. Accessible information helps people understand medication risks and navigate healthcare decisions.
• Including community voices. MedShadow examines the medication-safety concerns shared by people but pressure tests them with rigorous reporting, scientific research, and expert analysis.

MedShadow is a nonprofit committed to advocating for safer prescription and over-the-counter medications. We do not take money from pharmaceutical companies or supplement brands — and never will. Our work is 100% independent, evidence-based, and rooted in public health.

Generic drug safety is one important area of the work donor support makes possible. Thank you in advance for choosing to support MedShadow’s mission so that we can work to help people make safer, better-informed decisions about their medications.

– The MedShadow Team