APEC Tackles Threat of Counterfeit Medical Products

Despite its illegality, the counterfeiting of medicines is a booming industry in the Asian-Pacific region and around the world. Last week, experts from 17 APEC economies, including 11 developing economies, met in Singapore at the first of two APEC Life Sciences Innovation Forum (LSIF) Anti-Counterfeiting Health Products Seminar to establish systems to counter the spread of the illegal practice.

Apart from the threat to the health and safety of patients, Dr. John Lim, CEO of the Singapore Health Sciences Authority explains that, "The presence of counterfeit health products jeopardizes the credibility of the healthcare system, the pharmaceutical supply chain as well as the government institutions."

The growing sophistication of medical product counterfeiters and the expanding network of operations across Asian-Pacific economies has escalated the issue to what Tom Kubric, President of the Pharmaceutical Security Institute (PSI), considers as an international cooperation. This is reflected in the rapid increase in internet sales of pseudo-medical products. Consumers fall victim to the appeal of an apparent bargain but unwittingly purchase products with no medical value.

The two day seminar (January 13-15) resulted in a draft action plan for combating counterfeit medical products. This plan addresses all major points of the counterfeit trade and incorporates input from regulatory, law enforcement, and customs officials.

APEC member economies have also been encouraged to adopt the WHO IMPACT Single Point of Contact (SPOC) model. The model is based on the premise that by assigning a single point of contact, economies can take a tangible step to combat this grave threat.

The plan will be further refined in concluding meetings in Singapore from March 30-April 1. A similar two-part seminar series is planned for the Latin America region, the first of which will occur in Mexico in 2008.