USA - Ohio. Ohio Scrambles After Danes Forbid Use Of Pentobarbital

Ohio Scrambles After Danes Forbid Use Of Death Penalty Drug. Lundbeck, a Danish pharmaceutical company that produces and distributes a drug used in U.S. execution, is restricting the use of the drug, adding a significant obstacle for states such as Ohio who now have to find a suitable lethal injection drug. Lundbeck Inc. chief executive Ulf Wiinberg said today that his company is demanding that U.S. distributors and states not let pentobarbital be used as a lethal injection drug. Ohio prisons spokesman Carlo LoParo said that the state is struggling to find a new lethal injection drug, but that Ohio has enough of the drug for the next scheduled execution on July 19. Lundbeck's announcement is especially important to Ohio, which currently uses a single dose of the drug in executions.