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New initiative takes on counterfeit pharmaceuticals
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| Is this the real
thing? |
London,
8 August 2003
- ICC's Counterfeiting Intelligence Bureau (CIB), concerned about the
rise of counterfeit pharmaceuticals, has launched an action plan to deal
with what has become an increasingly global problem.
Peter Lowe of the
CIB said: "The CIB Counterfeit Pharmaceuticals Initiative (CPI) introduces
a number of communication-based objectives designed to attack the problem
of fraudulent pharmaceuticals."
The CIB is part of
Commercial Crime Services, a London-based specialized division of the
International Chamber of Commerce.
Once viewed as an
abuse found mainly in the developing world, illegal and counterfeit pharmaceuticals
are now emerging as a growing abuse in Europe, the United States, and
elsewhere.
"The upsurge
of counterfeit pharmaceuticals is a health risk that is escalating the
world over. We are now seeing very real threats in numerous industrialized
nations," Mr Lowe added.
He pointed to last
year's Global Forum on Pharmaceutical Anti-Counterfeiting as a catalyst
for this new initiative. "In many ways, the high turn out and strong
interest displayed there led to this new Counterfeit Pharmaceuticals Initiative,"
he said, "The Counterfeit Pharmaceuticals Initiative provides a direct
response to public concerns regarding counterfeit medicine."
A recent survey of
Russian citizens reflects growing public concern. The survey, conducted
by the Coalition for Intellectual Property Rights (CIPR), found that 90%
of those surveyed thought counterfeit medicines were an important problem.
Even more tellingly, 80% felt the issue was "personally very important"
to them, and nine out of ten said they would like to receive more information
from trusted sources about fake drugs.
In the United States,
the US Food and Drug Administration has seen its counterfeit drug investigations
increase to over 20 p
er year since 2000, after averaging only about five
per year through the late 1990s.
One of the primary
objectives of the new CIB initiative is to increase the collection and
dissemination of information on counterfeit materials between law enforcement,
pharmaceutical companies, the media, regulators, and customs officials
worldwide. The CPI will try to decrease the traffic in fraudulent pharmaceuticals
by opening channels of communication between these groups, and increasing
investigation and protection efforts on a number of fronts. The initiative
also makes use of the Internet, planning a web site to raise awareness,
educate, inform and collect intelligence.
Since it was formed
in 1985, the CIB has undertaken over 600 investigations into counterfeit
products in more than 35 countries.
For more information,
contact Peter Lowe at ICC Commercial Crime Services tel: +44 20 8591 3000
fax: +44 20 8594 2833, e-mail: Click here to send a mail
ICC
Counterfeiting Intelligence Bureau (CIB)
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Commercial Crime Services homepage
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