Archive for January 2011
Watson R. European Union prepares to tackle counterfeit drugs. BMJ. 2010;340:c2425.
European legislators are preparing new measures to clamp down on the sale of counterfeit drugs and to warn the public of the dangers of buying unauthorised drugs on the internet. The European parliament’s environment and public health committee has given overwhelming backing (51 members for, none against, and three abstentions) to moves to tackle the…
[...]Internet Pharmacy Owner Pleads Guilty to Selling Fake Drugs in US Court
A Belgian citizen, Manuel Calvelo, has pleaded guilty to operating an internet pharmacy that sold $1.4 million worth of misbranded and counterfeit drugs as well as controlled substances in U.S. District Court in Kansas on January 21st, 2011, while a co-conspirator, Jeffrey Westmoreland of Canada, is fugitive. After extradition from Costa Rica, Calvelo was charged…
[...]Pakistani Pharmacy Allegedly Selling Fake Drugs
Bahawalpur police and health officials are investigating a local pharmacy that has been allegedly selling fake injections and fake antibiotics.
[...]Belgian Citizen Pleads Guilty to Selling Counterfeit Drugs in US via Online Pharmacy
View larger map Belgian citizen Manuel Calvelo pleaded guilty to charges he operated an Internet pharmacy that sold $1.4 million worth of misbranded and counterfeit drugs as well as controlled substances. Who: Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Criminal Investigation, Justice Department’s Office of Consumer Litigation, U.S. District Attorney’s Office. When: Convicted January 21,…
[...]Indian Women Looking at Medicine by USAID
Indian women looking at medicineby USAID via Flickr.
[...]USAID Fights Fake Drugs and Helps Countries Find the Fakes
USAID raised the counterfeit drug alarm to Congress in a report including data on pervasive
fake anti-malarials and the success of medicine quality control assistance to 20 nations. USAID is
successfully fighting the impact of substandard medicines in developing countries through drug
authenticity training and technical assistance.
“Unfortunately, many developing countries lack the capacity to protect their citizens in this way, much less to protect them from unscrupulous drug manufacturers and vendors. What should be a matter of trust is more like a tragic game of chance with devastating odds,” said Dr. Maria A. Miralles, USAID’s
Senior Pharmaceutical Management Advisor.
To this end, USAID has also been supporting the development of a tool to enable regulatory authorities to evaluate their quality assurance systems in more than 20 nations, leading to recalls of substandard and counterfeit medicines and closure of illicit pharmacies.
[...]Chinese Prioritizing Fake Drug Crackdown
In Beijing, the State Food and Drug Administration announced the impounding of 60 tons of fake medical equipment, and the ongoing investigation of seven cases of counterfeit drug production and sale.
[...]WHO Attempts to Avoid Drug Resistant Malaria Epidemic
The World Health Organization is screening all residents of 20 villages in northwest Cambodia where drug-resistant malaria has evolved in part due to the victims exposure to counterfeit anti-malarial medications.
[...]Vietnamese Fake Drug Ring Busted
Ho Chi Minh City police have arrested 14 people who are allegedly members of a fake medicine production ring that police have been following for over a year.
[...]Indian Drugs to Carry Barcodes
The Directorate General of Foreign Trade announced new rules requiring medicine manufacturers to put barcodes on all products made for export in order to control for counterfeiting.
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