FDA Recommends Recall for Eye Drops From Walmart, Target, CVS, Rite Aid Due to Possible Contamination
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Eye Drops From Target, CVS, Rite Aid, and Walmart Prompt FDA Warning on Contamination Risk

Major retailers are pulling potentially unsafe lubricating eye drops from shelves, but some products may still be available online.
Eye Drops From Target, CVS, Rite Aid, and Walmart Prompt FDA Warning on Contamination Risk
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Updated on November 6, 2023

Editor’s Note

On October 30, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) added a product sold by Walmart, Equate Hydration PF Lubricant Eye Drop 10 mL, to its list of eye drops recommended for recall. Consumers should not buy or use this product.

On November 3, the FDA added another Leader brand eye drop product to its list, as well as eye drops from Harvard Drug Group under the brand name Rugby Laboratories.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning consumers to avoid over-the-counter lubricating eye drops sold by several major retailers, including Target, Rite Aid, Walmart, and CVS, because of possible bacterial contamination that could lead to infections, partial vision loss, or blindness. While brick-and-mortar retailers are pulling the affected products from shelves, some of the eye drops may still be available for purchase online and should be avoided.

The FDA recommended that retailers recall these items after unsanitary conditions were observed in the factory where the eye drops are produced, and sampling revealed bacterial contamination in critical manufacturing areas.

The following brands of over two dozen different lubricating eye drops and dry eye relief products were recommended for recall:

  • CVS Health
  • Leader (Cardinal Health)
  • Rugby (Harvard Drug Group)
  • Rite Aid
  • Target Up&Up
  • Velocity Pharma
  • Walmart Equate

The FDA offers a full list of products on its website.

Anyone with symptoms of an eye infection after using the eye drops should talk to their doctor or seek immediate medical care. Contaminated eye drops pose a significant infection risk because they can “bypass some of the body’s natural defenses,” the agency said.

So far, there haven’t been any reports of infection connected to the affected eye drops.

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Monroe Hammond

Author
Monroe Hammond joined Everyday Health in 2021 and now runs the news desk as an editor. They received a master’s degree from the Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY, as well as a bachelor’s degree in film and media studies from Emory University in Atlanta.

Hammond has written and edited explainers on a number of health and wellness topics, including racial disparities in HIV treatment, the metabolic benefits of cold exposure, how the flu shot works, and solutions for seasonal dermatology woes. They have also edited pieces on the latest developments from NASA, the health repercussions of climate change, and the cutting edge of quantum physics. Their work has appeared in Popular Science, Insider, Psychology Today, and Health Digest, among other outlets.

Before turning to journalism, Hammond taught English while living in Thailand and Malaysia. They were born and raised in the American South, and currently live in Brooklyn with their spouse, three cats, and too many houseplants to count.
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Everyday Health follows strict sourcing guidelines to ensure the accuracy of its content, outlined in our editorial policy. We use only trustworthy sources, including peer-reviewed studies, board-certified medical experts, patients with lived experience, and information from top institutions.
Additional Sources
  • FDA Warns Consumers Not to Purchase or Use Certain Eye Drops From Several Major Brands Due to Risk of Eye Infection. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. October 27, 2023.