Diane Alter – AHN News Reporter

Lincoln, NE, United States (AHN) – Novartis AG has voluntarily issued a recall of four popular over-the-counter drugs because they may contain broken or stray tablets from other products.

The drugs recalled include Excedrin, Bufferin, NoDoz and Gas-X.

The drug giant said in a statement released Monday that it has temporarily suspended operations at the Lincoln, NE, plant where the products were made.

The recall comes after consumer complaints of “chipped and broken pills and inconsistent packaging line clearance practices possibly resulting in mixed tablets,” the company reported.

Novartis said the recall is being done with the knowledge of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The recall involves all lots of bottles containing Excedrin and NoDoz with expiration dates of Dec. 20, 2014, or earlier, and Bufferin and Gas-X Prevention with use-by dates of Dec. 20, 2013, or earlier.

The Switzerland-based pharmaceutical company said the plant closing in Lincoln will result in a fourth quarter charge of $120 million before taxes. In morning trading, Novartis ADR’s (American Depository Receipts) were trading lower by half a percent at $57.

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