Source check

Which proof is worth opening?

Match the source to the question. A listing, an approval and a news headline answer different things.

Know what the record proves.

A product number
A product’s identifier called the National Drug Code (NDC) supplies no proof that FDA approved it; that remains true in September 2026. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) directory explanation
If a page treats a product number as proof, request that medicine’s approval record from FDA. Match the name and check the form: tablets or shots.
A registered place that makes medicines
Registering a place that makes medicines with FDA does not mean FDA approves that place or its drugs, under September 2026 rules. Federal registration rule
Registration also does not give permission to sell a medicine, under September 2026 rules.
Ask for the medicine’s approval record. A maker’s registration alone is not that record.
A panel’s advice
An FDA panel’s vote is advice. It does not change the rules for making medicines to order, as of September 2026. FDA explanation of changing the rules
Ask whether a headline describes advice, a proposal, or a rule that has actually taken effect.
A company letter
FDA’s searchable list of warning letters says later talks with a company may change the issues described. Search company letters
A warning letter describes what FDA says a company did wrong. It is not a final decision that the company broke the rules.
Read the date, any reply, and any note saying the matter is closed.
If a company has no warning letter, FDA may simply not have reviewed it.

For approval, shortage or price claims, open the underlying record. Save its date with the answer you were given.