Overview

• Two December 2024 lots of fentanyl produced by HLB Pharma and Laboratorios Ramallo have been linked to infections by Ralstonia pickettii and Klebsiella pneumoniae in 68 confirmed deaths and 19 nonfatal cases.
• About 933,000 ampoules from six contaminated lots were distributed nationwide and only 40% have been recovered for quarantine, leaving over half unaccounted for.
• Federal authorities have frozen assets, imposed travel bans and formally charged 24 people connected to production and distribution failures.
• Instituto Malbrán is conducting technical analyses on seized vials to confirm bacterial contamination and determine the full scope of patient harm.
• Investigators have added the first Córdoba fatality to the case and are tracking a three-month-old infant in critical condition after receiving a suspect dose.