Market actions

A market action happens when a product supplied in Australia experiences a problem. These can be:

• basic problems, such as errors in labels or packaging
• more serious and complex problems, such as an unexpected increase in side effects or microbial contamination.

Market actions vary based on the type of product, and the problem posed to health and safety. 

Sometimes, you must immediately stop using the product and it must be destroyed or returned. In other situations, it is safe to continue use, but healthcare professionals or patients need to be aware of the problem.

When a problem poses a risk to the health and safety of the community, we publish a statement on our website and social media channels. These web statements may also appear on the news or on other websites. 

These web statements contain the information about whether you need to:

• return or dispose of a product
• be aware of concerns with a product
• make changes or repairs to a product or
• use an alternate product.
  • you may be instructed to continue using the product if there are no alternate products available, but to be aware of and avoid situations that can cause the problem (for example, a software error that cannot be immediately corrected.)

You can see our latest alerts for significant recalls below or search our database (DRAC) for all published market actions.