FDA's Rule Banning Ephedra Upheld by Appeals Court

DENVER, Co. - An appeals court has upheld the FDA's final rule declaring all dietary supplements containing ephedrine alkaloids unsafe and illegal for marketing in the United States, reversing a 2005 decision by a Utah court. Nutraceutical Corp., et al. v. von Eschenbach, et al. No. 05-4151 (10th Cir. Ct. App.).

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit upheld the FDA's final rule on Aug. 17, after the agency appealed the U.S. District Court for the District Court of Utah's (Case No. 2:04-cv-409) decision, which granted the Utah-based Nutraceutical Corp.'s motion for summary judgment. Nutraceutical and its wholly …