The heparin fallout continues. As an update to our March 13 post, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) now reports 62, not 19, suspicious deaths in the United States linked to the blood thinner heparin, most of which occurred in December, January and February. According to an article in the New York Times, investigations continue into whether the deaths were caused by the Chinese contaminant.
Read MoreThe Partnership for Safe Medicines urges you to watch the groundbreaking film, Illicit: The Dark Trade, premiering nationwide tonight on PBS. Based on the best-selling book by Dr. Moiss Nam, Illicit exposes the staggering impact counterfeiting and piracy has on the world economy, jobs, and consumer health and safety.
Read MoreBryan A. Liang, MD, PhD, JD
According to some sources, there are at least 1,000 Web sites selling prescription drugs. Of course, not all of which are legitimate. Considering the sheer number of hits an Internet search for "online pharmacy" returns, it's not surprising that the U.S. Senate has put the Online Pharmacy Consumer Protection Act of 2007 on its legislative calendar.
Healthcare spending and prices are on the rise—again. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services estimates that overall healthcare spending in America will reach $4.3 trillion annually by 2017. Given that healthcare costs are increasing at nearly three times the rate of inflation, it's no wonder Americans are seeking ways to keep their healthcare costs low.
It looks as though the problems from China-sourced heparin are far from over. An unknown substance, similar in chemical makeup to heparin, has been found in batches of the blood thinner produced by U.S.-based Baxter International and Germany-based Rotexmedica.
Read MoreIt's an interesting phenomenon. We have general agreement that fake medicines put people in harms way – but an increasing number of these drugs are entering the world's markets. In fact, the World Health Organization estimates that up to 10 percent of all medicines are counterfeits, rising to 25 percent in some countries.
Read MorePolice personnel at Motema police station yesterday arrested a driver with four cartons of assorted pharmaceutical drugs at Mambodu junction in Kono district. Mustapha Kamara and his vehicle with registration number ADA 262 was stopped by the police for searching when the drugs were discovered. Kamara was being led to the station when a passenger…
Read MoreDakar, Senegal – The United Nations and its member states are failing to address serious threats to life and health posed by the promotion of unproven AIDS 'cures' and by counterfeit antiretroviral drugs," a global rights body, Human Rights Watch, stated in a recently released dossier. In the dossier, titled "Dangerous medicines: Unproven AIDS cures…
Read MoreThe evil of fake drugs have been described as worse than the combined scourge of malaria, HIV/AIDS and armed robbery put together because they can be prevented or they kill few at a time but fake drugs kill en mass. Secretary of the FCT Task Force on Counterfeit and Fake Drugs, Hajia Hauwa Kulu Ibrahim,…
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