![From QSR to QMSR: Meeting FDA’s New Requirements From QSR to QMSR: Meeting FDA’s New Requirements](https://www.fdanews.com/ext/resources/Book-Covers-NEW/From-QSR-to-QMSR-500.png?height=200&t=1714569011&width=200)
Home » PHILIPPINES CRACKDOWN ON COUNTERFEIT DRUG TRADE
PHILIPPINES CRACKDOWN ON COUNTERFEIT DRUG TRADE
September 19, 2005
The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) is stepping up efforts to combat the counterfeit drug trade. Six suspects have recently been arrested, and pharmacies closed down in the province of Pangasinan.
Fake drugs are a serious problem in the Philippines, with Pangasinan a favourite "dumping ground" for illicit products. Recent data estimates that counterfeit drugs worth up to PHP8bn (US$140mn) enter the Philippines each year, resulting in substantial losses for local industry.
The Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) ranked the country amongst its "priority watch" list of countries failing to implement adequate intellectual property controls in 2004. The most popular copy pharmaceuticals are antibiotics, anti-infectives and digestives, with the majority sourced from Thailand, India and China.
However, despite official claims that the authorities are doing all they can
to halt the trade, two government departments have come under fierce criticism
the Bureau of Customs (BoC) and the Bureau of Food and Drugs (BFDA).
The BoC is blamed for lax enforcement, allowing firms to import counterfeits
undetected. The BFDA is also notoriously slow in identifying local producers
of counterfeit drugs. More encouragingly, however, the government has cancelled
a plan to allow "parallel imports" of drugs from India and Pakistan.
KEYWORDS Daily International Pharma Alert
Upcoming Events
-
21Oct