Article: GSK gets O.K to sell weight loss drug as O-T-C.(News)(GlaxoSmithKline PLC)(Brief article)

WASHINGTON -- Glaxo-SmithKline PLC's (GSK's) consumer health care division has won Food and Drug Administration approval to sell orlistat, a weight loss drug, over the counter. The product will be marketed under the alli brand name.

Although a significant number of herbal supplements claim to promote weight loss, they do not require clearance by the FDA.

Formal approval came more than a year after an FDA advisory committee voted 11-2 to allow the product for nonprescription sales.

Alli is a reduced-strength version (60-mg capsules) of Xenical, a prescription product manufactured by Roche Holding AG. The prescription version (orlistat 120-mg ...

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