World News

The proliferation of counterfeit drugs on the global market and easy availability via online pharmacies is an increasing problem. The makers of counterfeit drugs have enjoyed and profited from loopholes in a system designed to deliver healthy medicines to those in need. The rising cost of prescription medications and the ubiquitous presence of online and…

The European Alliance for Access to Safe Medicines (EAASM) has today unveiled its comprehensive research report — The Counterfeiting Superhighway. The report revealed that a frightening 62% of medicines purchased online are fake or substandard. These include medicines indicated to treat serious conditions such as cardiovascular and respiratory disease, neurological disorders, and mental health conditions.…

Jorge Alan Rodriguez Sanchez, 32, was indicted by a grand jury in Philadelphia yesterday for conspiracy to distribute controlled substances through the operation of an illegal Internet pharmacy, Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division Alice S. Fisher and U.S. Attorney Patrick L. Meehan for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania announced today. 22 May 2008…

Emergence of Internet sales channels and transnational payment gateways are propelling the 50 billion dollar global counterfeit drug industry, while emerging economies like India are evolving as manufacturing hub for such markets, a latest report says. 21 May 2008 Read the full story at expressindia.com.

The following statistics may not give India much reason to cheer. The country is still the second largest counterfeit medicines exporter to the European Union in 2007, although it has forfeited the first position it held in 2006 to Switzerland. As per data released by the European Commission on Monday, India stands second after Switzerland…

The European Union expressed concern on Monday about a major increase in imports of counterfeit drugs, cosmetics and toys, calling it a threat to public health and the region's economies. Last year, customs authorities in the 27 EU nations discovered 51 percent more cases of fake medicines, while seizures of counterfeit toys were up by…

More than a third of the anti-malarial medicines sold in Kampala are either counterfeit or are not strong enough to cure the disease, a survey has revealed. Because of this, scientists warn, malaria could easily become resistant to the new generation of medicines that have replaced chloroquine. We did not quantitatively estimate the public health…

The proliferation of counterfeit drugs on the global market and easy availability via online pharmacies is an increasing problem. The makers of counterfeit drugs have enjoyed and profited from loopholes in a system designed to deliver healthy medicines to those in need. The rising cost of prescription medications and the ubiquitous presence of online and…