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Counterfeit Drug Incident Encyclopedia Alerts Public to Risks

csip_slide_pills_partnershipsafemedsCounterfeit drug incidents happen around the globe and are responsible for an estimated 100,000 deaths each year. Our partner, The Partnership for Safe Medicines (PSM), shares our goal of educating consumers about counterfeit medicines sold by unscrupulous criminals. To increase awareness and to keep the public alerted to risks, PSM publishes the Counterfeit Drug Incident Encyclopedia, a running list of counterfeit drug seizures, arrests, and deaths around the world.

Preventing counterfeits is a challenge because individual incomes keep medicines out of reach for many people. The lucrative counterfeit drug trade thrives in regions where regulation and law enforcement are weak, and affects unsuspecting consumers worldwide.

The deadly combination of demand for inexpensive prescription drugs and enormous profit margins makes counterfeit drugs attractive to greedy criminals. Below is a sampling of some of the unscrupulous criminals and their heinous crimes from the Counterfeit Drug Incident Encyclopedia:

  • January 2014: Mohammad Jamal Rashid, 45, a Pakistani national who resides in Houston, Texas pleaded guilty to illegal importation and attempted trafficking of counterfeit drugs, and to receiving and delivering misbranded drugs. He imported over 7,000 doses of counterfeit erectile dysfunction medications from China, under a false name and with false customs forms. Lab tests showed they had little to no active ingredients. He faces a possible punishment of up to eight years in prison and a $260,000 in fines.
  • December 2013: Daniel Burdine, a pharmacy owner and pharmacist from San Diego, was found guilty to health care fraud in charges pertaining to his purchase and sale of illegally imported cancer medications from a known supplier of counterfeit cancer medication, based in Winnipeg, Canada.
  • July 2013: Michael Lawrence O’Donnell of Pleasant Grove, Utah, was sentenced to a year in federal prison for operating a series of unlicensed wholesale businesses that sold non-FDA approved prescription drugs to health care providers. O’Donnell imported prescription drugs from a United Kingdom-based company and filled prescription drug orders via two fake Internet B-to-B pharmacies he set up.

The problem of counterfeit pharmaceuticals is widespread. We encourage you to check the Encyclopedia often, as it is an invaluable tool that provides updated information that shows the types of crimes being committed and the actions government agencies and law enforcement are taking to stop counterfeit drug crime. For more educational resources, we also encourage you to check out our Education Campaign, Reports & Studies, and Links.

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The Center for Safe Internet Pharmacies (CSIP) and our 13 member companies have the shared goal of helping address the growing problem of consumer access to illegitimate pharmaceutical products on the Internet. Continue to read this blog for updates on CSIP’s education, enforcement and information-sharing efforts.