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Weekly Update |
February 8, 2010 |
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$12M in Counterfeit Drugs Seized in Southeast Asia
An international police
operation led to the seizure of $20M in counterfeit and illegal medicines,
including antibiotics, anitimalarials, contraceptives, anti-tetanus vaccines,
aspirin and drugs to treat erectile dysfunction. An estimated $12M were counterfeits
with the remaining $8M found to be drugs that were "expired, diverted or
unregistered."
Who: Medical Products Counterfeiting and
Pharmaceutical Crime (MPCPC); Singapore's
Health Sciences Authority; the Counterfeit Drug Forensic Investigation Network (CODFIN);
and the World Health Organization's International Medical Products
Anti-counterfeiting Taskforce (IMPACT) program.
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When: Reported Jan. 28, 2010; operation
carried out between July and November of 2009.
Where: The operation covered eight
countries in Southeast Asia: Cambodia,
China, Indonesia, Laos,
Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand
and Vietnam.
How: The seizure is credited to the
collaboration between public and private organizations at the international
level.
Additional details:
On January 28, the International
Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) released details of Operation Storm II, an international
operation resulting in the seizure of an
estimated $20 million in fake and illegal medicines that led to the closure
of 100 pharmacies and illegitimate drug outlets and more than 30 related arrests.
According to INTERPOL, Operation Storm II was created under
the framework of the World Health Organization's (WHO) International Medical
Products Anti-Counterfeiting Task Force (IMPACT); coordinated by INTERPOL and
supported by the Western Pacific Regional Office (WPRO) division of the WHO.
In a statement, INTERPOL
said these partnerships "provided a platform for collaboration between
national police, customs and drug regulatory authorities from eight countries (Cambodia, China,
Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar,
Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam), as well as with
international organizations and the private sector."
INTERPOL Secretary General
Ronald K. Noble noted the critical importance of public-private partnerships
and international action to combat the counterfeit drug trade, adding that a
collaborative response is "all the more important when globalization and
modern technology mean that the methods of producing and distributing
counterfeit medicines cut across borders and are developing and increasing,
thereby posing an increased threat to people's health and lives."
Tom Kubic, president and
CEO of Pharmaceutical
Security Institute and board member of the Partnership for Safe Medicines
applauded the multinational, multi-agency effort. "The only way we can
stop unscrupulous counterfeiters from endangering the public is by working
together across international lines and government agencies," said Kubic.
"It's heartening to see more and more countries taking aim at counterfeit
drugs and the public health hazard that they pose. There is much work ahead,
but efforts like this prove we're making great progress."
The
final stage of the operation included a training course in Jakarta, Indonesia,
January 25-26. The training was conducted by INTERPOL -IMPACT and involved more
than 40 Indonesian police, regulators and representatives from the justice
department.
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Top News
Europe: Lifestyle Drugs Purchased
Online Present Health Risks
Though purchasing lifestyle drugs online is attractive for
its anonymity, it brings with it substantial health risks. In addition to the
possibility of taking counterfeit or substandard drugs, the lack of physician
care may cause underlying health issues to go untreated. "[Performance]
problems can be an early warning sign of heart disease or diabetes," says
Dr. Graham Jackson, a cardiologist at London
Bridge Hospital
in the UK.
"If you do have a problem and don't see a doctor, diagnosis of those
important conditions can be missed. Men with no symptoms at all who [develop
performance] problem[s] usually are an average of three to five years away from
a heart attack. Instead of going to the internet, they should be going to their
doctors to find out if they are at risk and to do something about it." ("Fake Drugs Bought on the Web Pose Big Health Risks," Business
Week, January 29, 2010; Story
here)
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World News
Lebanon: Officials Investigate Pharmacies
Selling Counterfeit Drugs
Additional pharmacies are at risk of closure following the closure of nine pharmacies and
four medical distribution warehouses last week, according to Health Minister
Mohammad Jawad Khalifeh. The pharmacies in question were found to be in
possession of a counterfeit form of Plavix, a heart medication. The ministry is
now widening the search, after closing all the pharmacies and warehouses
involved in distribution. ("Khalifeh: Investigation Into Counterfeit Drugs Widened",
The Daily Star, February 1, 2010; Story
here)
Vietnam: Officials Seek to Stop Counterfeit
Drug Sellers
The
Investigative Police Bureau in Ho Chi
Minh City has issued a warrant for the arrest of
Viet-Phap Joint-Stock Pharmaceutical Company Director Huynh Ngoc Quang and 13 accomplices for making and selling counterfeit drugs. The group is
accused of purchasing domestically manufactured drugs from pharmaceutical
companies, grounding them up and repackaging them with foreign-imported labels
to sell at higher prices. The medicines were sold under brand names including
Vastarel, Nimupas, Terneurin, Becozumy, and Fugacar. ("Fourteen Accused of Selling
Fake Drugs in HCM
City," Vietnam Net,
February 3, 2010; Story
here)
Nigeria: Counterfeit Anti-Malaria Drugs Seized
by Officials
On January 26, officials of the National Agency for Food and
Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC) seized a large quantity of
counterfeit anti-malarial drugs in several pharmacies in the city of Kaduna. The alleged fake anti-malaria
drugs and other antibiotics did not pass the on-the-spot tests carried out by
NAFDAC officials. The agency officials promptly ordered that the fake anti-malaria
drugs be put "on hold" pending evacuation from the dealers' shops and
threatened to seal off the various shops where the fake drugs were discovered.
The seized fake drugs, NAFDAC officials said, would be subjected to further
laboratory tests and the dealers would be prosecuted. ("NAFDAC Seizes Fake Anti-Malaria
Drugs in Kaduna Markets," The Punch Nigeria, January 27, 2010; Story here)
Poland: According to Experts, Counterfeit
Drugs Run Rampant
According
to the World Health Organization, Poles spend about 100 million zloty (25
million euro) a year on counterfeit drugs. Last year, the Customs Service
confiscated more than 10,500 counterfeit drug doses worth 40,000 euro. Most of them
were counterfeit lifestyle drugs, however police reports show that diet pills,
steroids, psychotropic and anti-cancer medicines are also frequently falsified.
("Fake Drugs Flood Poland,
The News, February 3, 2010; Story
here)
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About the Partnership for Safe Medicines
The Partnership for Safe Medicines is a group of organizations and individuals that have policies, procedures, or programs to protect consumers from counterfeit or contraband medicines. For more information, please visit SafeMedicines.org.
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