Are Fake Prescription Drugs Killing Us?

"What would have cost tens of thousands of dollars...can now be done for hundreds of dollars, so it's easier to fake stuff now," warns Roger Bate, resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) and the author of "Phake: The Deadly World of Falsified and Substandard Medicine."

Counterfeit, adulterated, or otherwise compromised prescription drugs are a major problem in Africa and a growing problem in the First World, argues Bate. In recent years, counterfeiters passed off hundreds of thousands of phony Lexapro pills around the globe and in 2008 at least 149 Americans died from fake Heparin, a blood-thinning drug. All told, says Bate, the number of deaths globally from ineffective drugs ranges from 100,000 to 1 million.

As drug production moves to China and other developing nations where oversight is tougher to maintain and more sales take place online where provenance can be tougher to ascertain, Bate says that the most viable solution is increased vigilance on the part of drug makers, providers, and patients alike. He looks forward to a fast-approaching world in which hand-held spectrometers verify pills on the spot and praises various online-pharmacy certification programs.

Referring to the classic 1949 film, "The Third Man," in which Orson Welles plays a drug counterfeiter whose watered-down penicillin in post-war Europe leads to the death of several children, Bate gives Hollywood credit for being well ahead of the curve on putting the spotlight on what he calls "the 2nd oldest profession."

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The fight against counterfeit drugs

60 Minutes' nine-month investigation of counterfeit prescription drugs reveals how the dangerous and sometimes deadly fakes get into the nation's drug pipeline. Dr. Sanjay Gupta reports.

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Control and Reporting Counterfeit Medicine In Malaysia

Control

The Ministry of Health has imposed the use of security label hologram (picture 1) to all medicinal products since September 2005. This is to prevent and control counterfeit products assessing the Malaysian market. Medicinal product with genuine Meditag^TM hologram is considered genuine and medicinal product with fake hologram or without the Meditag^TM hologram is considered counterfeit and unregistered. The authenticity of the Meditag^TM hologram can be examined by the public in all community pharmacies in Malaysia using Decoder Meditag^TM (picture 2). 

Picture 1: Meditag Hologram

Picture 2: Meditag Decoder

Picture 3: Verifying the authenticity of the Meditag hologram in pharmacy

Picture 4: Example of counterfeit medicine (with & without Meditag Hologram)

Reporting

If a medicine is suspected to be illegal or counterfeited, publics are advised to stop taking and seek medical advice should they fell unwell. They can report the incident to their pharmacist or doctor who will then inform the Ministry of Health accordingly. Alternatively they may report directly to the:

Pharmaceutical Services Division,

Ministry of Health, Malaysia,

Lot 36, Jalan Universiti,

46350 Petaling Jaya.

Tel: 03 7841 3200

Fax: 03 7968 2251 or

email to pharmacy1@moh.gov.my.

Public can visit the Pharmaceutical Services Division official web sites, www.pharmacy.gov.my for further information.

Source: MyHealth Ministry of Health Malaysia

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What Is Counterfeit Medicines?

Introduction

Counterfeit medicines are found everywhere in the world ranging from random mixtures of harmful toxic substances to inactive and ineffective preparations. Some contain a declared, active ingredient and look so similar to the genuine product that they deceive health professionals as well as patients. But in every case, the source of a counterfeit medicine is unknown and its content unreliable. Counterfeit medicines are illegal in Malaysia. They can result in treatment failure or even death. Eliminating them is a considerable public health challenge.

Definition

The World Health Organization (WHO) defines counterfeits medicines as:

"medicines that are deliberately and fraudulently mislabelled with respect to identity and/or source. Both branded and generic products are subject to counterfeiting. Counterfeit medicines may include products with the correct ingredients or with the wrong ingredients, without active ingredients, with insufficient or too much active ingredient, or with fake packaging".

As for Malaysia, there is no specific definitions on counterfeits medicines, however the legislation for counterfeit products are well covered under The Trade Act. According to The Sales and Drug Act 1952: Regulation 7(1)(a), 7(1A)(a-g) of the Control of Drugs and Cosmetic Regulation (CDCR) states that all medicinal products must be registered with National Pharmaceutical Control Bureau (NPCB) Ministry of Health before being marketed. All registered medicinal products will be given a unique registration numbers.

Products with the following criteria are considered unregistered medicinal products which include the counterfeit medicinal products:-

(i) if they bear

• No registration number
• False registration number
• Registration number belonging to other products
• Registration number which has been cancelled
• No safety label hologram Meditag ^TM
• False hologram Meditag ^TM
• Ingredient which differ from the original formula during registration
• A mixture of 2 registered products
• Information on the packaging which differ from the approved version

(ii) if they contain Adulterants

Source: MyHealth Ministry of Health Malaysia

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Guidelines on Handling Counterfeit Banknotes by Commercial Banks

These are the guidelines on handling counterfeit banknotes by commercial banks, as provided by Central Bank of Malaysia (BNM) :

1. Do not stamp “Disyaki Palsu”, write on, cut, re-circulate or alter the physical condition of the suspected counterfeit banknotes.
2. Record full details of the sender’s name, address and I/C number, denomination, quantity of counterfeit banknotes and other related information in a record on the detection of suspected counterfeit banknotes.
    
3. Hand-over a copy of (2) above to sender as proof of the bank’s receipt of the suspected counterfeit banknotes.
    
4. Photocopy sender’s I/C and the suspected counterfeit banknotes.
    
5. Lodge a police report at the nearest police station promptly and surrender the suspected counterfeit banknotes, copy of sender’s I/C and other related documents to them.

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Checking a Fake Banknote

You might had visited the post on Detecting a Counterfeit Banknote but the article seems a lot of words and may irritate some of word-o-phobia (really?).

So we brought to you the video version which is more interactive and attractive, produced by lunaticg blog. The money used here is Malaysia Ringgit (MYR) 100.
Here you go:

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How to Differentiate or Identify Counterfeit Notes using Banknote Detector

How to spot fake money?  How to check and confirm forgery notes?
Here are some useful tips to identify counterfeit RM50 notes; brought to you by Nibo Corporation Sdn Bhd.
*RM/MYR stand for Ringgit Malaysia

Overall paper reflection of UV light

 (✔ means real banknote, X means fake banknote)

Security vertical strip does not differentiate the real and fake banknotes

Deer head reflection (real banknote)

Deer head reflection (fake banknote)

Serial number reflection (fake banknote)

Serial number reflection (real banknote)

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What Do You Do If You Receive a Counterfeit Banknote?

After you able to detect any counterfeit and fake banknote, you must be wondering; what should I do now?

Some advices, do notify the police immediately if you have received counterfeit banknotes. Using or returning counterfeit banknotes is just as illegal as manufacturing it. Counterfeit banknotes are not eligible for replacement!

Follow these steps (as provided by Central Bank of Malaysia or BNM):

• Delay the person (passer) who gives you the counterfeit banknotes if possible and observe the passer's description, as well as that of his/her companion if any, and the license numbers of any vehicles used by them
   
• Do not write on, cut or re-circulate the counterfeit currency
   
• Handle the currency as little as possible (e.g. you can put it in an envelope or plastic cover). Record on a separate sheet of paper all the details about how you got the currency, who gave it to you, where and when you got it
   
• Take the counterfeit currency to the nearest police station and surrender the counterfeit currency to them after lodging a police report

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Online Scam: Couple, Two Men Nabbed for Circulating Counterfeit Notes

A couple and two men have been arrested by police in separate raids in Petaling Jaya for possessing and distributing counterfeit notes.

Police said the suspects, believed to have been active since October last year, were nabbed on June 5th and 11th after they were detected using the fake money to cheat individuals selling items online.

Authorities also seized an undiclosed amount of 100 ringgit counterfeit bills, printing equipment and several handphones.

A total of 13 reports have been lodged over the matter, involving losses amounting to 21 thousand ringgit.

All those detained, aged 27 and 28, were remanded until June 15 to facilitate investigations.

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