Policy/Enforcement News
Kansas Woman Convicted of Tax Evasion Also Faces Counterfeit Drug Charges
Example of counterfeit Botox courtesy USFDA. The former owner of a Leawood, Kansas business, Midwest Medical Aesthetics, has been charged with importation of misbranded drugs. Kathleen Stegman has been charged with illegally importing $194,000 worth of non-FDA approved “Botox,” Dysport,” “Restylane,” “Perlane,” and “Sculptra,” according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Stegman is currently…
[...]Former Attorneys General of Georgia and Florida Speak Out Against Drug Importation
The bills before Congress would remove many of the license and oversight requirements on the drugs imported into the United States by lifting those barriers, inviting an influx of bogus pharmaceutical products from the same crime rings that are selling these drugs in other countries around the world that would love better access to the U.S. market.
Law enforcement would inevitably be tasked with policing the problem, at a time when most prosecutors and law enforcement officials have their hands full with the growing opioid crisis. One of the biggest killers is fentanyl, a potent, synthetic opioid pain medication that is being laced into counterfeit pills.
[...]FDA Regulation Keeps Both our Food and Medicines Safe
When policymakers talk about drug importation, they often make comparisons to importation of food. “If we can import produce safely,” they say, “don’t tell me we can’t import medicine.”
The truth is that importing food safely is difficult. The stakes are even higher when we import medicine: no one expects lettuce to cure cancer . . .
[...]Women in 2 States Indicted in Separate Clandestine Silicone Injection Scams
Update: In May 2017, Deanna Roberts pleaded guilty to illegally injecting persons with liquid silicone and for introducing liquid silicone that was obtained by fraud into interstate commerce. Roberts, who continued to administer industrial grade silicone injections even after she knew that one her patients had died and others had been hospitalized, was sentenced to…
[...]Fake Pills Manufacturing Equipment Found in Canadian Drug Dealer Bust
Police in Ottawa made a disturbing discovery when conducting a drug bust, CBC Canada is reporting. In addition to finding a typical array of cash, drugs and guns, Ottawa police found a quantity of an “unknown powder” that has yet to be analyzed, and a counterfeit pill press capable of producing 20,000 counterfeit pills an…
[...]A Conspiracy of Warm Boxes: The Story of Canadian Drug Wholesaler SB Medical and their Disregard for Patient Safety
The case against Canadian drug importer SB Medical/TC Medical Group is one of the largest prosecutions of its kind. In 2015, the company and four of its employees were sentenced after pleading guilty to conspiracy and misbranded prescription pharmaceutical charges, according to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). The DOJ press release at the time…
[...]Partnership for Safe Medicines Board Warns US Senate about Dangers of Importation
On May 9th, the board of the Partnership for Safe Medicines sent the following letter to all members of the U.S. Senate. Dear Senator, The Partnership for Safe Medicines has dutifully studied the problem of counterfeit drugs in America for over a decade. We have examined court transcripts of prosecutions of counterfeiters, watched scientists test counterfeits…
[...]DOJ Cases Highlight the Dangers of Illegal Silicone Injections
Cosmetic procedures are increasingly common these days, but so are illegally run clinics that promise to improve a person’s appearance while endangering their clients’ lives for the sake of profit. Two recent cases highlight the continuing efforts of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) and the United Stated Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to…
[...]Canada Drug Center Parent Company Charged for Selling Misbranded Drugs to Americans
Canadian pharmaceutical importer Quantum Solutions and its officers have been charged with two felony counts by the DOJ. Quantum Solutions runs a dozen different pharmacy websites, including Canada Drug Center. Dr. Kenneth McCall, of the University of New England, tested prescriptions from Canada Drug Center in 2014, and found they were substandard and contaminated. Three…
[...]The Fallacy of Drug Importation
Former Federal Regulators, Law Enforcement Officials Dispute Rhetoric on Drug Importation Merits, Highlight the Serious Harm Posed to Patient Health Washington, D.C. — In one of the strongest challenges to drug importation proposals to date, several former federal law enforcement officials and public health experts warned of serious consequences in opening up the U.S. drug supply…
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