Check Your Medicine Cabinet — Millions of Eye Drops Just Got Recalled

As far as medical products go, eye drops are relatively mild. While they can be useful to millions of Americans, and some might even have preferred brands, there's not a ton of variation in the ultimate product.

A recent announcement from the FDA, though, suggests that there are certain kinds of eye drops you shouldn't buy, at least not right now.

The recall impacts more than 3 million bottles of eyedrops at stores all over the country. Here's what we know about it.

In a report published on March 31, the FDA revealed that 3,111,072 bottles of eye drops were recalled on March 3 for “Lack of Assurance of Sterility.”

This designation doesn't necessarily mean that the eye drops were unstable, but it does mean that the maker could not guarantee their sterility. It's possible that infection-causing microbes could have contaminated the drops during production.

The eye drops in question were generic brands at major pharmacies. Here's a non-exhaustive list of places where the eye drops are being recalled:

Pharmacy/Drug Chains

• Walgreens
• CVS Health
• Rite Aid
• Good Neighbor Pharmacy (AmerisourceBergen)
• Discount Drug Mart

Grocery Chains

• Kroger
• H-E-B
• Harris Teeter
• Publix
• Meijer

Other Retail

• Dollar General (DG Health)
• Circle K
• Cintas (industrial/workplace distributor)
• Rugby Laboratories
• CDMA/QC-Quality Choice
• NovaBay Pharmaceuticals (Avenova)
• Military Exchanges (Exchange Select)
• Grandall Distributing (Colirio brands)
• Lil’ Drug Store Products
• 4 Trees LLC (Code Red)

Wholesale/Distributor Brands

• Cardinal Health (Leader brand)
• McKesson (Foster & Thrive brand)
• Perrigo (Good Sense brand)
• UNFI (Equaline brand)
• Topco Associates (TopCare brand)
• Valu Merchandisers (Best Choice brand)

Sterile Eye Drops AC (tetrahydrozoline HCl 0.05%, zinc sulfate 0.25%)

• Brands: Best Choice, QC-Quality Choice, Discount Drug Mart, Good Sense, Walgreens, CareOne, Equaline, TopCare, Meijer, H-E-B
• 0.5 fl. oz. (15 mL)
• Lot: AC24E01, Expiration date: 05/31/26

Eye Drops Advanced Relief (dextran 70 0.1%, polyethylene glycol 400 1%, tetrahydrozoline HCl 0.05%)

• Brands: Walgreens, Kroger, CVS Health, QC-Quality Choice, Discount Drug Mart, Foster & Thrive, Good Sense, TopCare, DG Health, Code Red
• 0.5 FL OZ (15 mL)
• Lots/Exp: AR24D01 exp. 04/30/26; AR24G01, AR24G02

Dry Eye Relief Eye Drops (glycerin 0.2%, hypromellose 0.2%, polyethylene glycol 400 1%)

• Brands: Geri Care, TopCare, Rite Aid, Leader, Discount Drug Mart, H-E-B, Foster & Thrive, Meijer, DG Health, Harris Teeter, Exchange Select, Good Neighbor Pharmacy
• 0.5 FL OZ (15 mL)
• Lots/Exp:

Ultra Lubricating Eye Drops (polyethylene glycol 400 0.4%, propylene glycol 0.3%)

• Brands: Leader, Harris Teeter, Foster & Thrive, Walgreens, Publix, Kroger, Good Sense, Meijer, CVS Health (single and twin pack), QC-Quality Choice, Avenova
• 0.5 FL OZ (15 mL)
• Lots/Exp: SU24E01, SU24E02 exp. 05/31/26; SU24K01

Sterile Eye Drops Original Formula (tetrahydrozoline HCl 0.05%)

• Brands: Good Sense, Walgreens (single and 2-pack), Kroger, Lil’ Drug Store, CVP, Harris Teeter, H-E-B, Rugby, Equaline, Discount Drug Mart, Leader, CareOne, Circle K, DG Health, Good Neighbor Pharmacy, TopCare, Best Choice
• 0.5 FL OZ (15 mL)
• Lots/Exp: RG24E01 exp. 05/31/26; RG24G02 exp. 07/31/26

Sterile Eye Drops Redness Lubricant (glycerin 0.25%, naphazoline HCl 0.012%)

• Brands: Industrial Eye Relief (Cintas), Good Neighbor Pharmacy, Colirio Ojo De Aguila, Colirio Oftal-Mycin, Leader, Equaline, Walgreens, Foster & Thrive, Rite Aid, Discount Drug Mart
• 0.5 fl oz (15 mL)
• Lots/Exp:

Sterile Eye Drops Soothing Tears (polyethylene glycol 400 0.4%, propylene glycol 0.3%)

• Brands: Rugby, Walgreens
• 0.5 fl oz (15 mL)
• Lots/Exp: SY24K01, SY24K02 — exp. 09/30/26

Artificial Tears Sterile Lubricant Eye Drops (polyvinyl alcohol 0.5%, povidone 0.6%)

• Brands: Leader, Good Sense, Good Neighbor Pharmacy, TopCare, Best Choice, Kroger, Publix, QC-Quality Choice
• 0.5 FL OZ (15 mL)
• Lots/Exp:

The FDA didn't offer any guidance on whether refunds would be available, but they advise consumers to avoid buying these products. If you've already purchased them, retailers might offer returns or exchanges, although that's not guaranteed.

If you have concerns, you should contact your eye doctor.