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Last Updated – 09-10-2026
Amlodipine is not banned in Canada. It remains an approved prescription medicine, and multiple amlodipine products continue to be listed by Health Canada as marketed or approved in Canada.
The confusion largely comes from several product recalls involving particular brands, lots and manufacturing problems. These recalls did not prohibit amlodipine itself.
Most notably, Health Canada announced a February 2026 recall of two lots of MAR-Amlodipine 5 mg after some bottles were found to potentially contain midodrine tablets instead of amlodipine.
An earlier recall involving NRA-Amlodipine 5 mg occurred after certain bottles from one lot could contain metoprolol tablets.
These are serious medication-safety issues, but they are fundamentally different from banning amlodipine nationwide.
Is Amlodipine Banned in Canada?
No. Amlodipine has not been banned by Health Canada.
Health Canada’s Drug Product Database continues to list several amlodipine products in 2.5 mg, 5 mg and 10 mg strengths as marketed or approved prescription medicines.
For example, Health Canada currently lists marketed 5 mg amlodipine products from companies including Accord Healthcare, Angita Pharma, Pro Doc, Sanis Health, Sivem Pharmaceuticals, JAMP Pharma and Altamed Pharma.
Health Canada’s official database can be used to confirm whether an individual medication has an active Drug Identification Number and its current regulatory status.
Therefore, claims that “Canada banned amlodipine” are misleading. What Canada has done is recall particular batches where a manufacturing, packaging or product-quality problem was identified.
Why Do People Think Amlodipine Was Banned in Canada?
The strongest reason for the confusion is the publicity surrounding several recalls.
A medicine being recalled can easily be interpreted on social media or search results as the drug being “removed” or “banned”.
However, recalls normally apply to a particular manufacturer, strength, DIN, batch or lot rather than every medicine containing the same active ingredient.
Three Canadian cases illustrate the difference.
| Recall | Product | Problem | Affected Lot(s) |
| February 2026 | MAR-Amlodipine 5 mg | Some bottles could contain midodrine 2.5 mg | 2472021 and 2472021A |
| July 2025 | NRA-Amlodipine 5 mg | Some bottles could contain metoprolol succinate 12.5 mg | EM240229 |
| September 2025 | JAMP Amlodipine 10 mg | Lot could contain oversized tablets | 2403038A |
None of these recalls amounted to a Canadian ban on amlodipine.
What Happened With the MAR-Amlodipine Recall in 2026?
The most recent major incident was announced in February 2026.
Marcan Pharmaceuticals recalled two lots of MAR-Amlodipine 5 mg, DIN 02371715:
- 2472021
- 2472021A
Both affected lots had a July 2027 expiry date.
Health Canada said some bottles could contain midodrine 2.5 mg tablets instead of the expected amlodipine tablets. The recall was classified as a Type I recall, indicating a potentially serious health risk.
The recall was distributed nationally and covered retailers, wholesalers and healthcare establishments.
Why Was the Mix-Up Potentially Dangerous?
Amlodipine and midodrine have very different effects.
Amlodipine is commonly prescribed to lower blood pressure and manage conditions such as hypertension and angina. Midodrine is used in situations involving abnormally low blood pressure and works by increasing vascular tone.
Health Canada warned that replacing amlodipine 5 mg with midodrine 2.5 mg could result in effects including a dangerous increase in blood pressure, dizziness, fainting and organ damage.
That is why identifying the affected bottles became an important patient-safety issue.
How Can You Identify the Recalled MAR-Amlodipine Tablets?
Health Canada provided a straightforward visual distinction between the correct MAR-Amlodipine tablet and the incorrect midodrine tablet.
Correct MAR-Amlodipine 5 mg
The correct tablet is:
- White to off-white
- Flat
- Eight-sided
- Scored across the middle
- Marked “210” and “5” on one side
- Blank on the opposite side
Incorrect Midodrine Tablet
The incorrect tablet is:
- White
- Round
- Marked “M2”
- Scored on the other side
Health Canada advised people with the affected product to return bottles containing unusual or round tablets to their pharmacy.
Importantly, patients should not stop a prescribed blood-pressure medicine simply because they have heard about an amlodipine recall. The brand, DIN and lot number need to be checked first.
What Happened With the NRA-Amlodipine Recall?
Another significant incident occurred in July 2025, when Nora Pharma recalled one lot of NRA-Amlodipine 5 mg.
The affected details were:
| Detail | Information |
| Product | NRA-Amlodipine 5 mg |
| DIN | 02476460 |
| Lot | EM240229 |
| Expiry | August 2027 |
| Incorrect medication | Metoprolol succinate prolonged-release 12.5 mg |
Some bottles from the affected lot could contain metoprolol instead of amlodipine.
Health Canada described the correct NRA-Amlodipine tablets as white or off-white, octagonal, flat and scored through the middle, with “210” and “5” on one side.
The incorrect metoprolol tablets were white, round and scored in the middle.
Why Was the Metoprolol Mix-Up Serious?
Although both medicines can be used in cardiovascular treatment, they are not interchangeable dose-for-dose.
Health Canada warned that replacing amlodipine 5 mg with metoprolol succinate 12.5 mg could cause problems including:
- Dangerous changes in blood pressure
- Abnormally low blood pressure
- Slow heart rate
- Breathing difficulties
The risk could differ depending on a person’s existing medical conditions and other medicines.
Health Canada specifically noted additional concerns for people with conditions such as heart failure, asthma, diabetes, severe peripheral arterial disease or pheochromocytoma.
This recall was also classified as Type I.
Was There Another Canadian Amlodipine Recall?
Yes. In September 2025, JAMP Pharma recalled a specific lot of Amlodipine 10 mg, DIN 02429225.
The affected lot was 2403038A.
Unlike the Marcan and Nora incidents, this was not a wrong-medication packaging problem. Health Canada said the affected lot could contain oversized tablets.
The incident was classified as a Type II recall.
Again, the recall involved one specific lot rather than amlodipine as a medicine.
What Is the Difference Between a Drug Recall and a Drug Ban?
This distinction explains most of the confusion surrounding amlodipine in Canada.
A drug recall removes particular products from distribution when a safety, labelling, manufacturing, contamination or quality issue is identified.
A recall may affect:
- One production lot
- Several lots
- A particular dosage
- One manufacturer
- One DIN
- One formulation
Other versions of the medicine may remain available.
A ban, by contrast, would involve regulators preventing the drug from being legally marketed or supplied more broadly because the medicine itself was no longer authorised or considered acceptable for use.
That has not happened with amlodipine in Canada.
Health Canada’s database continues to show numerous amlodipine products as marketed.
Why Do Some Amlodipine Products Say “Cancelled” in Health Canada’s Database?
This is another potential source of misinformation.
Searching Health Canada’s Drug Product Database can return a mixture of statuses, including:
- Marketed
- Approved
- Dormant
- Cancelled pre-market
- Cancelled post-market
Seeing one particular amlodipine product marked “cancelled” does not mean the active ingredient has been banned.
Individual manufacturers may cancel a DIN, discontinue a product, choose not to market an approved product or withdraw a particular formulation while numerous competing amlodipine products remain available.
For example, Health Canada’s current records show some amlodipine DINs as cancelled while others are simultaneously listed as marketed.
The regulatory status of one manufacturer’s product therefore should not be interpreted as the status of amlodipine generally.
What Is Amlodipine Used For in Canada?
Amlodipine belongs to a group of medicines known as calcium-channel blockers.
It is commonly prescribed for cardiovascular conditions, particularly:
- High blood pressure
- Certain forms of angina or chest pain
- Other situations where a healthcare professional considers calcium-channel blockade appropriate
The medicine relaxes blood vessels, which can reduce vascular resistance and help lower blood pressure.
Canadian amlodipine products are prescription medicines, meaning their use should be supervised by a healthcare professional. Health Canada’s database currently lists amlodipine tablets in strengths including 2.5 mg, 5 mg and 10 mg.
For people paying for medication themselves, certain eligible prescription expenses may also be relevant when calculating medical expenses on taxes in Canada.
Eligible Albertans with significant ongoing prescription needs can also check whether the Alberta Adult Health Benefit may provide applicable prescription-drug coverage.
Should You Stop Taking Amlodipine Because of the Canadian Recalls?
Generally, do not stop taking prescribed amlodipine simply because you have seen reports about a recall.
First determine whether your specific medication is affected.
Check:
- Brand name
- Strength
- DIN
- Lot number
- Expiry date
- Tablet appearance
If the product does not match an affected recall, the recall does not automatically apply to your medication.
Stopping a blood-pressure medicine without professional guidance could leave blood pressure uncontrolled or cause other problems.
If you cannot identify the manufacturer or lot number, a pharmacist can check the medication and dispensing record.
What Should You Do If You Have MAR-Amlodipine Lot 2472021 or 2472021A?
Health Canada’s advice for these specific recalled lots is to immediately check the tablets inside the bottle.
If you see round tablets rather than the expected eight-sided tablets, do not take those round tablets and return the bottle to the pharmacy for replacement.
If an immediate replacement is unavailable, Health Canada’s recall notice states that patients should continue taking their medication as directed but must not take the round tablets.
Health Canada advises contacting a healthcare professional or calling 911 in connection with symptoms such as dizziness, unusually high blood pressure or slow heartbeats.
Immediate medical attention is advised for chest pain, a sudden headache, inability to move or feel part of the body, or impaired speech.
What Should You Do If You Have the Recalled NRA-Amlodipine Lot?
For NRA-Amlodipine 5 mg lot EM240229, patients should check whether the bottle contains any round tablets.
Health Canada’s guidance says that bottles containing round tablets, or bottles where there is uncertainty about the tablets, should be returned to the pharmacy for replacement.
The round tablets should not be taken because they may be metoprolol rather than amlodipine.
Patients experiencing dizziness, unusually low blood pressure or a slow heartbeat should contact a healthcare professional.
Health Canada’s recall notice provides further emergency instructions for affected patients experiencing these symptoms.
Is Amlodipine Safe to Take in Canada Now?
There is no Health Canada announcement indicating that amlodipine as an active ingredient has been withdrawn or banned from Canadian use.
Multiple products containing amlodipine remain marketed, and Health Canada continues to classify them as prescription medications.
The Canadian recalls show why medication-manufacturing controls and post-market surveillance are important, but they should not be interpreted as evidence that every amlodipine product is unsafe.
The relevant question is whether a particular bottle belongs to an affected lot, rather than whether the medicine is called amlodipine.
Why Is Amlodipine Still Available After a Type I Recall?
Because the risk originated from particular affected products rather than evidence that amlodipine itself should no longer be used.
A Type I classification indicates that the specific defective product may create a serious health risk. It does not necessarily mean every product containing that active ingredient must be withdrawn.
In the 2026 Marcan case, for example, the problem was the possible presence of midodrine tablets inside bottles labelled as MAR-Amlodipine.
Removing the affected lots targets the actual safety problem without unnecessarily eliminating correctly manufactured amlodipine from the Canadian market.
FAQs
Why was amlodipine banned in Canada?
It wasn’t. Amlodipine remains an approved prescription medicine in Canada. Specific lots have been recalled because of packaging or manufacturing problems.
Is amlodipine still available in Canada?
Yes. Health Canada’s Drug Product Database continues to list multiple amlodipine products as marketed or approved.
Why was MAR-Amlodipine recalled?
Two MAR-Amlodipine 5 mg lots were recalled in February 2026 because some bottles could contain midodrine 2.5 mg tablets instead of amlodipine.
Which MAR-Amlodipine lots were recalled?
The affected lot numbers were 2472021 and 2472021A, with a July 2027 expiry date.
Which NRA-Amlodipine lot was recalled?
NRA-Amlodipine 5 mg lot EM240229, expiring August 2027, was recalled because some bottles could contain metoprolol succinate prolonged-release 12.5 mg tablets.
How can I recognise the recalled wrong tablets?
Correct MAR/NRA-Amlodipine 5 mg tablets are white or off-white and eight-sided. Midodrine involved in the Marcan recall was white and round with “M2”, while the metoprolol involved in the Nora recall was white, round and scored.
Should I stop taking amlodipine?
Do not stop a prescribed medicine solely because you have heard about an amlodipine recall. Check your brand and lot number and speak with your pharmacist or prescribing healthcare professional if you are uncertain.
