Meningitis outbreak: Questions and answers

Answer: It's unclear — the CDC's investigation is ongoing on that point. Experts from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health are assisting.

“Something like this should never happen,” Quraishi said. “That's the bottom line.”

Question: Who oversees the safety of compounding facilities?

Answer: Although the FDA regulates drug manufacturers, it does not have the same authority over drug compounders such as NECC.

This week, lawmakers in Washington called for a congressional investigation of the outbreak. “This incident raises serious concerns about the scope of the practice of pharmacy compounding in the United States and the current patchwork of federal and state laws and systems that oversee this practice,” Rep. Henry A. Waxman, D-Calif., and others wrote in a letter to the leaders of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.