Pfizer welcomes the 1st European Parliamentary symposium on
pharmaceuticals "Putting an end to drug counter-feiting", which
convened European policy makers, regulators and specialists on
counterfeiting and medicines trading in the European Parliament today.
"Pfizer is very concerned about the surges in counterfeit
medicines, putting at risk the lives and wellbeing of patients in
Europe and elsewhere," said Julian Mount, Vice President, of European
Trade at Pfizer. "Illegal internet trade is one part of the story.
However, fake drugs have also made it into the legitimate medicines
supply chain in Europe."
Pfizer's particular concern in Europe is the entry of counterfeit
medicines into the legitimate supply chain via medicines trading
commonly referred to as the parallel trade of medicines between member
states. For this to happen, the complex and fragmented nature of
medicine distribution in Europe presents multiple opportunities. Over
140 million medicine packs are parallel traded across Europe each
year, all are opened and altered and can travel through as many as
20-30 pairs of hands before finally reaching the patient.(1)
For instance, when counterfeit Lipitor was discovered in the UK
supply chain in July 2006 - resulting in a UK-wide recall which
involved over 240 pharmacies; over 50% of returned packs were found to
be fake. Middlemen companies who trade as intermediaries in buying and
selling life saving medicines were directly involved in this case and
were found with counterfeits in their possession.
The WHO estimates that 8% to 10% of the global medicine supply
chain is counterfeit, reaching as high as 25% in some countries.(2)
At a WHO meeting in Rome in February 2006, Dr. Nils Behrndt,
Deputy Head of Pharmaceuticals Unit DG Enterprise and Industry,
highlighted a 1000 per cent increase in counterfeit seizures between
1998 and 2004 in Europe.
"It is particularly difficult for patients to know if a medicine
is counterfeit when it is supplied through trusted sources", said
Mount. Whether a counterfeit drug comes through an illegal channel or
has managed to penetrate the legitimate medicines supply chain -
Pfizer strongly believes that patients must be protected against fake
medicines that, in the best case, have no effect, or worse can cause
serious harm. Pfizer believes this arbitrage system in life saving
medicines must stop and prescription medication must be safeguarded
from these proven dangers. It is time, with the growth in counterfeits
entering the European supply chain, for a substantial review of the
way medicines are traded, re-packaged and supplied by numerous
intermediaries in Europe.
(1) Haigh, J., IMS Global Consulting, quoted in 'Parallel Trade in
Medicines', Social Market Foundation, June 2004
(2) http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs275/en/
