Policy/Enforcement News
Interpol Seizes 9 Tons of Counterfeit Drugs in East Africa
International authorities recently seized nine tons of counterfeit drugs from a number of East African nations. According to Interpol, 80 people were also arrested on suspicion of illegal trafficking in the two-month long operation that took place in Uganda, Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Zanzibar, reports CNN. The seized drugs included anti-malaria medication, vaccines and…
[...]Feds Crackdown on Online Pharmacies in Utah and Illinois
Federal authorities are beginning to crackdown on online pharmacies that distribute prescription drugs without prescriptions. Federal agents recently filed court papers in Illinois and Utah over two online pharmacies that are allegedly run by the same man, Kyle Rootsaert, according to CNN. The agents had obtained search warrant affidavits for the two pharmacies in Des…
[...]Stolen Carbatrol and Adderall XR – Check Lot Numbers
A pharmaceutical company recently alerted the U.S. Food and Drug Administration that some drugs taken during a 2008 pharmaceutical cargo theft may be beginning to reappear in the market. On October 17, 2008, a shipment of Carbatrol and Adderall XR made by Shire Pharmaceuticals was stolen en route between the company’s manufacturing facility in North…
[...]Countries Work to Secure Panama Canal from Terrorist Attacks, Counterfeit Shipments
Eighteen countries, including the U.S., recently participated in military maneuvers in Panama City, Panama to prepare for any potential terrorist act that could disrupt maritime traffic. Over the course of 12 days more than 2,000 civilian and military personnel took part in the exercises designed to protect the canal that handles 5 percent of all…
[...]Counterfeit Drug Arrest at Maine Festival
The Lewiston, Maine Sun Journal reported on August 17th, 2010 that twenty individuals from around the country were indicted by a grand jury for selling and possessing illegal and counterfeit drugs at the Nateva Music and Camping Festival last month. The four-day Nateva Festival, the first event in what is anticipated to be an annual…
[...]British Virgin Islands Vigilant for Counterfeit Drugs
Minister of Health and Social Development Honourable Dancia Penn delivered the seminar’s opening remarks and stressed the dangers of counterfeit drugs. She said that a community-wide effort would be needed to keep counterfeit drugs out.
[...]Indian Drug Association Forms Task Force
An Indian pharmaceutical association has established a task force to regulate the sale of medication. In response to the bust of a major racket involving the sale of expired medication and counterfeit drugs, the Tamil Nadu Pharmaceutical Distributors Association (TNPDA) is planning on creating a task force that would help gather intelligence about fake drug…
[...]Study: Half of Croatia’s black market drugs are counterfeit
A recent study in Croatia revealed that nearly half of the medication seized from the country’s illegal supply chain are counterfeit drugs. The study, published in the Croatian language journal Lijecnicki Vjesnik, found that of the 26 samples of erectile dysfunction medication seized in the bust, 13 were counterfeit, according to BiomedME.com. The samples underwent…
[...]Advocacy Group Criticizes the Philippines’ Regarding Counterfeit Drugs
An advocacy group in the Philippines recently criticized the government’s handling of counterfeit drugs. The Samahan Laban sa Pekeng Gamot (“Samahan”), a group comprised of pharmaceutical companies, drug stores and health professionals, counters the Philippines’ Department of Health’s claim that counterfeit drugs account for only 10 percent of the market, saying that the actual figure…
[...]Coalition Partially Blames Slow Judicial Process for Fake Drugs in Philippines
The Coalition Against Fake Medicines, a group of public and private institutions whose aim is to rid the Philippines of counterfeit drugs, recently called the country’s slow judicial process a major factor in the rise of phony medicines. The Coalition, which includes the Philippines’ Department of Health and Pfizer, recently held a press conference to…
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