The Myth of Drug Expiration Dates
(former pharmaceutical developer here).  This article makes it sound like there&#x27;s a big conspiracy, which there isn&#x27;t.<p>A very few drugs (like erythromycin) become toxic so should be discarded.<p>Some drugs become less efficacious over time, but nobody really knows the shape of the curve as they are simply tested to see if they have the same efficacy on day E as they did on day 0.  Well of course all drugs will become worthless as t approaches ∞ but you can guess that since tablets have a very low moisture content, if they are kept in a cool dark place it&#x27;s likely they&#x27;ll last a very long time.  I also happily keep expired drugs in a controlled environment and use them; all drugs in my car&#x27;s and backpack&#x27;s first aid kits get replaced annually because they are exposed to harsh environments.<p>(Stockpiling drugs doesn&#x27;t prove anything BTW: if you are stockpiling them against an emergency the presumption is that <i>some</i> efficacy is better than none).<p>Nobody is going to do accelerated life testing beyond what they have of course.  I think extending the required lifetime is a good idea, though I question the size of the economic return claimed in the article.<p>The expiration dates on food are slightly more scandalous: the FDA doesn&#x27;t require the same level of testing as they do on the medical side so they are mainly set stupidly short.  Last week purchased some vacuum-packed lamb that had a manufacturer label with an expiration date a month away, but was prominently labeled to expire this week.  And of course US egg producers take steps  that <i>reduce</i> the storage time of eggs, which can be months old when you get them -- and then &quot;expire&quot; a week after getting home.