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The Partnership For Safe Medicines Interchange Archive Since 2010, SAFEMEDICINES has hosted the Interchange to assess the state of counterfeit medication globally, and bring together stakeholders from government, industry, medicine, science, and patient advocacy to come up with solutions to the problem of counterfeit drugs. The archives for past Interchanges can be found below.
Read MoreThe FDA has released more information about their new counterfeit drug detection device, Counterfeit Detection Device 3 (CD-3). In this newly-released video, Nico Ranieri, the FDA research biologist who developed this new technology talks about how important such innovations are to patient safety.
In
2005, it first occurred to Nicolas Ranieri to try to use the type of
ultra-violet light devices deployed in crime scene investigations in a
hand-held counterfeit drug detection device.
Up to that point, drug testing equipment was both delicate, expensive, and
also required highly-trained scientists to
perform the tests for fakes. Says
Ranieri, “We wanted to find counterfeits, and we wanted to find them as fast as
possible,” reports the FDA.
Rx360 has launched a new campaign educating healthcare providers to the risks of buying diverted and suspect products advertised directly to doctors’ offices via fax blast, direct email and online marketing.
Lewis T. Kontnik, team lead for the education campaign, says, “Some of the recent
problems with counterfeit and diverted medicines in the US, including
the counterfeit versions of Avastin, resulted in part from a lack of
awareness by physicians and medical practice administrators
of the risks of counterfeit and diverted medicines. The ads of the
professional diverters can appear tempting when they promise ‘genuine’ medicine and substantial discounts, however the facts are different and
the consequences can be very serious.”
Click on the image to download the flyer.
Read MoreWhen London police raided an apartment in west London last month, they were looking for visa cheats. What they found instead was over $750,000 worth of counterfeit medications stored in deplorable conditions.
A raid by Home Office Immigration Enforcement officers in West London that was aimed at catching people who had overstayed their visas instead found a vast quantity of unlicensed prescription medications, reports the MHRA. Investigators from the MHRA believe the drugs, which were mostly ED, weight loss, and hair loss treatments, were manufactured in India. Anabolic steroids were also found in the raid.
Read MoreIn 2012, the FDA sent over 350 warning letters to doctors advising them they may have purchased fraudulent or misbranded injectable drugs, including fake versions of Avastin, Botox, and two different osteoporosis treatments. Now the FDA has identified another batch of fake Botox that is currently being marketed to doctor via fax blast.
On April 26, 2013, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) posted a drug safety warning for healthcare practitioners, warning them that fraudulent versions of the anti-wrinkle treatment Botox are being marketed and sold in the US. The Botox is being sold by unlicensed suppliers, and has not been vetted within the secure U.S. supply chain. They state that the FDA “cannot confirm that the manufacture, quality, storage, and handling of these products follow U.S. standards. These fraudulent products are considered unsafe and should not be used.“
Read MoreLearn more ways women’s health is at risk from medication counterfeiters.Click on image for full graphic.
Read MoreTwo proposals in the Maine legislature (LD 171 and LD 449) to import drugs from all over the world would endanger Maine patients without saving them any money. Maine patients would end up having their prescriptions filled by foreign companies that aren’t licensed pharmacies and sell drugs that aren’t even FDA-approved, assuming they didn’t get counterfeit drugs with either chalk or toxins.
For a serious condition, such as high blood pressure, asthma, and blood clots, even medicine made of chalk is a dangerous pill.
Read MoreMaine Senate to vote on LD 171 which will expose Maine patients to counterfeit drugs What: The Maine Senate will vote very soon on a bill (LD 171) to import drugs from black market pharmacies all over the world. The medications they want to import, which are not FDA-approved, would come from foreign pharmacies that aren’t licensed in the US.…
Read MoreAbstract
Background: Illicit or rogue Internet pharmacies are a recognized global public health threat that have been identified as utilizing various forms of online marketing and promotion, including social media.
Objective: To assess the accessibility of creating illicit no prescription direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) online pharmacy social media marketing (eDTCA2.0) and evaluate its potential global reach.