The Food and Drug Administration Office of Regulatory Affairs has increased regulation of imported goods by 35% over the past five years, employing more than 2,000 analysts and conducting more than 100,000 analyses annually, says David Elder of the FDA Office of Regulatory Affairs.
Working cooperatively with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection and other agencies, the FDA uses a targeted, risk-based approach to electronically examine 100% of imported drug products followed by additional reviews by FDA imports personnel to ensure key compliance, says David Elder, regional operations director in the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Office of Regulatory Affairs.
Read the full interview with David Elder, as reprinted from FDA Consumer Updates under Read More below.
A Canadian Paralympic curling champion recently pleaded guilty to selling counterfeit drugs in the U.S. Jim Armstrong and his son Gregory pleaded guilty in a Seattle court to selling and dispensing counterfeit drugs with intent to mislead or defraud, reports CTV. The pair was accused of peddling phony erectile dysfunction medication. The 59-year-old allegedly attempted to…
Read MoreA new agency has been set up in Liberia to combat illegal trade in counterfeit drugs in the country. A representative of the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime told Voice of America that counterfeit drug crime is currently on the rise in West Africa. This puts patients at increased risk of malaria, the leading cause of…
Read MoreAuthorities in Kenya will soon institute regulations on the operations of herbalists who sell counterfeit drugs wrongly described as herbal remedies to patients, reports Business Daily Africa. “The regulations will require that herbalists register their medicines and that those medicines have to go for laboratory analysis,” Edward Abwao – assistant chief pharmacist at the Pharmacy and…
Read MoreNigeria, one of the countries that has been hit hardest by counterfeit drugs, is continuing to battle the public health menace even though the criminals are getting more sophisticated at producing and disguising fake medicine. Leading the fight is Dr. Paul Orhii, the director-general of the country’s National Agency for Food And Drug Administration and…
Read MoreLocal Nigerian authorities recently shut down more than 1,200 illegal pharmacies in Lagos for selling substandard and counterfeit drugs. The Lagos State Task Force on Counterfeit, Fake Drugs and Unwholesome Processed Foods reportedly shut down 1,253 illegal pharmaceutical outlets at Idumota, at the Lagos Central Business District (LCBD) on Lagos Island, according to the newspaper…
Read MoreA large pharmaceutical theft occurred at a drug manufacturing facility in Ontario and now the police are asking the public for help. Niagara Regional Police said that in late August a large quantity of pseudoephedrine was stolen from the Fort Erie pharmaceutical manufacturing company in Fort Erie, Ontario, according to the Buffalo News. After having…
Read MoreThe Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) in New Brunswick were part of the recent global effort, termed Operation Pangea, to fight the sale of counterfeit drugs from illegal online pharmacies. Law enforcement officials warned consumers that many of the websites that claim to be Canadian pharmacies are in fact run from other countries around the…
Read MoreCounterfeit drugs are becoming an increasingly serious problem in Vietnam but there are stern punishments in place for those who are caught dealing in this nefarious trade, according to Viet Nam News. The news source reports that Vietnam’s Criminal Code has sentencing guidelines that provide for two to seven years of imprisonment for those caught…
Read MoreA UK grandmother got quite a surprise when a team of policeman raided her home expecting to find counterfeit drugs. Police entered Margaret Waite’s Lockeridge home hoping to find criminals, and instead found a 69-year-old that pointed out that while they were on the right street, they were in the wrong house, according to Gazette…
Read More