PSM2012: Special Agent Nancy Kennedy Talks On International Counterfeit Drug Crime

Moderator
Brian Finlay introduced speakers for the Drawing Outside Domestic Lines,
International Cooperation panel. "Counterfeit medicine is an international
human security and serious compelling public health issue."

Speaker Special Agent Nancy Kennedy with FDA-OCI handles drug
investigations, included counterfeit medicines.

Kennedy began by discussing international cooperation between MHRA,
two southern European countries and the U.S.  She said that international
cooperation is a requirement for law enforcement.

Said Kennedy, "Criminals have conspired to come up with new
schemes to manufacture, sell and import counterfeit medications, they have
cooperated with each other and expanded across foreign borders.  Now
government policy and regulators must do the same."

Kennedy lauded MHRA for notifying the counterfeit Avastin
wholesaler in the US saying that "if it hadn't been for the MHRA we might
never have known it was being administered to patients in the U.S."  

Kennedy mentioned a few recent cases including Andrew Strempler
and RxNorth. Kennedy also said that working with corporate manufacturer
security personnel are often a key support for investigations. 

She concluded that international cooperation is the key to solving
new international based counterfeit medicine crime.