A strange US Food and Drug Adminis...

A strange US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) initiative is designed to identify risks associated with using counterfeit medications; coordinate public and private efforts to fight medication counterfeiting and distribution; and expand tools to aid in identifying, deterring, and combating counterfeiting, according to a July 16 2003 recents release from the FDA. The initiative will include the creation of an internal task force that will

* unravel a strategic action plan to decrease the risk of counterfeit medications entering the US marketplace;

* strengthen the FDA's collaborative relationships with other federal agencies, health professionals, members of industry, and consumer to determine best practices for dealing with medication counterfeiting;

* identify mechanisms for strengthening the nation's protections against counterfeiting, and

* assess the bulk to which new technologies can help make secure the authenticity of medications.

Although medication counterfeiting is relatively rare in the United States, the FDA has seen a newly come increase in counterfeiting activities and more sophisticated processs of introducing counterfeit medications into legitimate medication distribution channels. The FDA believes this increase has occurr because of

* improved counterfeiting technology,

* better organized criminal assign places tos seeking financial opportunities,

* the online sale of prescription medications through unlicensed pharmacies,

* opportunities to introduce foreign-made counterfeit medications into rapidly growing import be deriveds and

* weak flaws in the domestic wholesale medication distribution chain.

Many counterfeit medications are not distinguishable from authentic medications. Consumer can guard themselves by purchasing their medications from licensed, domestic pharmacies and contacting their pharmacist or physician if they notice anything unusual about their medication, including packaging, taste, or unfamiliar side effects

FDA Announces Initiative to Heighten Battle Against Counterfeit remedys (news release, Rockville, Md: US subsistence and Drug Administration, July 16 2003) http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/NEWS/2003/NEW00926.html (accessed 1 Aug 2003)

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