U.S. Food and Drug Administration Funds WHO Anti-Counterfeiting Surveillance Project
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has announced that it will help fund a new project by the World Health Organization that seeks to develop a “global surveillance and monitoring system for combating counterfeit medicines and breaches in the supply chain,” according to a government release.
Other aims of the funding include the development of “consistent terminology” among member states of the WHO in the realm of counterfeit drugs as well as the publication of peer-reviewed research on the “growing complexities and threats addressing counterfeit or falsified medicines and supply chain security,” reports the release.
In addition to offering funding, the FDA plans to offer technical assistance to the WHO project through data collection and through aiding WHO member states as they develop data-sharing processes.
The commitment runs from one to four years. The FDA plans to contribute $960,500 for the first year of the collaboration and $847,500 for every following year the collaboration remains in existence. Extension of the collaboration beyond the first year is contingent on the availability of FDA funds as well as on the success of the WHO project.