Drugmaker’s Decision to Halt Production of Drug Threatens U.S. Death Penalty System
Not too long ago, The Wall Street Journal Law Blog reported that drugmaker Hospira, Inc., based in Lake Forest, Illinois, will permanently cease production of sodium thiopental, an anesthetic that is a key component for the lethal injection drug combinations used in capital punishment. Although states can use a different anesthetic in place of sodium thiopental, such a switch likely would have to be approved by courts and potentially state legislatures.
According to an article in The New York Times, Hospira had planned to resume production of the drug this winter at its plant in Italy, as it does not have any domestic facilities capable of producing the anesthetic. The Italian parliament, however, issued an order prohibiting exportation of the drug if it might be used to perform lethal injections. Hospira issued a statement on January 21, 2011, in which it noted the difficulty of “control[ling] the product all the way to the ultimate end user” to ensure it was not used for capital punishment. Given the issues surrounding the product and the challenges associated with bringing the drug back to the market, Hospira decided to “exit the market.”
Last year, a temporary halt in production delayed scheduled executions in California and Oklahoma. As a result of the shortage, pentobarbital, a drug used to euthanize animals, was reportedly approved for use in capital punishment in Oklahoma when the state sought court clearance to use the drug as a substitute. The New York Times reports that the process of approval in many states may take much longer than that provided for in Oklahoma. Specifically, it quotes the executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center, who notes that many states will require formal proposes, public comment, and challenges in court, which is a process that can take months to complete. It is expected, in light of Hospira’s recent statement, that most states will now follow Oklahoma’s lead in seeking similar approvals of the substitute drug.
The news of Hospira’s decision has reignited debates online about the merits of capital punishment. (See here and here, for example). Hospira’s announcement most certainly will cause states throughout the country to scramble for approval of a new drug combination.
