Institute of Health Law Studies, California Western School of Law, San Diego, California, USA.
J Pharm Sci. 2011 Nov;100(11):4571-9. doi: 10.1002/jps.22679. Epub 2011 Jun 22.
Counterfeit drugs are a global problem with significant and well-documented consequences for global health and patient safety, including drug resistance and patient deaths. This multibillion-dollar industry does not respect geopolitical borders, and threatens public health in both rich and resource-poor nations alike. The epidemiology of counterfeits is also wide in breadth and scope, including thousands of counterfeit incidents per year, encompassing all types of therapeutic classes, and employing a complex global supply chain network enabling this illegal activity. In addition, information technologies available through the Internet and sales via online pharmacies have allowed the criminal element to thrive in an unregulated environment of anonymity, deception, and lack of adequate enforcement. Though recent global enforcement efforts have led to arrests of online counterfeit sellers, such actions have not stemmed supplies from illegal online sellers or kept up with their creativity in illegally selling their products. To address this issue, we propose a global policy framework utilizing public-private partnership models with centralized surveillance reporting that would enable cooperation and coordination to combat this global health crisis.
假药是一个全球性问题，对全球健康和患者安全造成了重大且有据可查的影响，包括药物耐药性和患者死亡。这个价值数十亿美元的产业不尊重地缘政治边界，无论是在富裕国家还是资源匮乏的国家，都对公共卫生构成威胁。假药的流行病学也具有广泛的广度和范围，包括每年数千起假药事件，涵盖所有类型的治疗类别，并采用复杂的全球供应链网络来实现这种非法活动。此外，通过互联网提供的信息技术以及通过在线药店进行的销售，使得犯罪分子在匿名、欺骗和缺乏充分执法的不受监管的环境中得以蓬勃发展。尽管最近的全球执法努力导致了对在线假药卖家的逮捕，但这些行动并没有阻止非法在线卖家供应假药，也没有跟上他们非法销售产品的创造力。为了解决这个问题，我们提出了一个利用公私伙伴关系模式的全球政策框架，进行集中监测报告，以促进合作与协调，应对这一全球健康危机。
